Another day begins
by meikku
Summary: Post season 2, a whole new day where a good guy turns into a bad guy, someone is thought to be dead but isn't and someone is (again) almost Kimnapped ;) The story now FINISHED!
1. Another Day Begins

Author's note: This is my first fanfic, so please be understanding :) I haven't really decided what's gonna happen here, so comments and suggestions are more than welcome!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Michelle sat at her desk and sighed. She'd been working all day long and was seriously getting tired. She realized that she'd only had a cup of decaf at noon and a sandwich Kim had brought her from the cafe next to CTU, and that was.. Hours ago, she thought to herself and let her eyes wonder around the office in search for Tony. He was standing on the upper level and giving instructions to a young girl, who seemed to be very much confused. Tony gave a brief look towards Michelle's workstation and their eyes met. He smiled, but then jerked his head towards the girl as she started talking. She was pointing at papers and looking worried, yet enthusiastic. Michelle guessed she had just started working at CTU and smiled as she remember her first days at the office, that would soon be a lot more than just an office. Judging by the hours they spent there every day, every week, it was more like home. At first it felt intimidating to allow work to have such a control over your life, but you'd get used to it. This was no ordinary job, where you'd come in at 8 a.m and leave at 4 p.m, go home and forget everything and start living your home-centered life. Sometimes it was hard, she admitted that, especially when she and Tony had just gotten married. There was a lot of fighting and silent treatement over the fact that they never saw each other outside the office. But it takes a lot of understanding and trust and they both aknowledged the demands of the job pretty soon. This was something that had to be done. It was important and they'd just make the best of what they had.

"Busy?" Jack asked teasingly getting Michelle startled.

"Oh.. Hi, Jack. What? No, not really." She laughed after realizing she had just been slacking for a while whereas everyone else were doing they're tasks so that they'd get home some time tonight.

"It's a quiet night for me, nice change though!" she continued. "I was actually just trying to get Tony's attention so we could head home in a minute."

"Yeah.. I think he was instructing that kid from IT?"

Michelle looked over to the upper-level and tried to find them but she could see neither Tony nor that new girl.

"Yeah.. Um... I guess. They were there just a minute ago..." She looked back to Jack: "You're heading home some time soon?"

"Yeah.. Look, if you're tired I can give you a ride if Tony is busy."

"Thanks, but I'll think I'll wait for him, there's not much to do tonight so I seriously hope he's ready to go soon."

"Ok." Jack turned to leave.

"Jack?"

"Yeah?"

"If you see him, tell him, I'm waiting for him and... tell him to hurry, ok? I'm starving and I just want to go to bed!"

Jack laughed: "Don't we all? I'll tell him if I see him."  
  
Michelle tried to find Tony from the upper level, but she couldn't see him anywhere. His office was empty too. Her feet were killing her and she was too tired to get up and find him herself. Suddenly the phone rang.

"Dessler" Michelle answered.

"Hey Michelle, it's Kim. You haven't seen Chase by any chance?"

"Funny thing you'd mention it, I've being dying to find Tony for a minute here, so we could go home."

"Oh, I was thinking the same thing here. So you haven't seen him?"

"No, I haven't. Jack was here though. He was gettinget ready to leave."

"Oh, ok. Well, I just have to find him myself. Maybe he was heading to IT?"

"Maybe, I'd check the coffee-room as well, it has been our Mecca for the past couple of days!"

Kim laughed and Michelle got a bit cheered up. They hung up.

Tony was leaning over a computer screen. A young blonde girl was sitting in front of it and pointing at some satellite photos with a small pen. There were some frames missing from the images. It was probably nothing but it was also something that had to be checked. Tony didn't want Chapelle on his back or anything, so he'd play by the rules on this.  
  
"Jack! Can you come here for a minute?"

Jack, who was walking by to get his coat and car keys from his office looked annoyed, but came anyway.

"Look, I'm just about to leave, can't this wait?"

"I'd like to see this done tonight, it's probably nothing, but what do you think about these?" Tony asked explaining the whole situation.

"You're right, it's probably nothing.. I'll have few guys check the area."

"Yeah.. Ok"

"Look, Michelle was looking for you." Jack said as he headed towards his office to make some phone calls.

Tony walked the stairs down to the lower-level where Michelle's workstation was at. She was resting her head between her arms and he felt guilty for having her wait there for him. She lifted her head up and looked at Tony and smiled. He could see how exhausted she was. "I'm sorry sweetheart, you're ready to go?"

"Yeah. A quiet night for me. I did that analysis on the database Jack asked me to and it seems to be running just fine. I don't know what Chloe was complaining about?"

"Can't blame you, she's been extraordinary bitchy lately." Tony smiled after taking a quick look to ensure that Chloe wasn't anywhere close.

"Don't worry, she left a few minutes ago." Michelle smiled knowing what her husband was thinking.

The new shift was getting settled as they slowly started flooding towards the workstations one by one. 

The phone rang and Michelle grapped it: "Dessler".

Tony noticed how weary her voice sounded but was still amazed how he himself wasn't that tired at all. He had had a few, and by that he meant a dozen cups of coffee in the coffee-room with Chase. They were talking about sports. "It's the Cubs-mug" he thought and smiled.

"It's for you, Tony." Michelle said in a very neutral tone. Tony took the phone.  
  
Michelle knew what this was all about. Again, he would have to stay at CTU for some stupid reason while she'd go home and sleep alone. He'd come just before the sunrise and sleep all morning, while she'd sit in the kitchen eating breakfast, alone, and then they'd start to get ready for work. The only time they ever spent time together was in the car while heading for work. They didn't even have lunch or dinner together. They'd just pick chinese or something to go and eat it wherever they had time. She had eaten her lunch with Kim more often now as Tony seemed to be in a hurry all the time. She'd thought it would have changed when Jack got back and took the lead, but no, it hasn't.  
  
"Oh.. Ok, I'll be there in a minute." Tony put the phone down, Michelle had already packed her things.

"I'm so sorry Mich..."

"Don't! Tony, just.. Don't!" Michelle stood up. "I'll ask Jack to give me a ride. Again."

She emphasized the word 'again' so that Tony would notice the clue, although it was obvious to him. She started walking away from him in a quick pace.

"Michelle, stop! Look at me." Much to Tony's surprise she turned around, sighed and looked straight to his eyes. She was quiet for a moment, just enough for Tony to see how he had hurt her feelings, again.

"I see you in the morning. Good night."

Tony felt guilt ridden. He hated himself for doing this to her. He'd thought they were over this thing, but obviously they weren't. He knew he worked too much, but, especially during these last months he had had difficulties spending enough time with Michelle. It's not that he didn't want to, Oh God, how he missed her. She was the only thing lighting up his day in this cold and stony place. He just looked from his office, where he had an excellent view over the lower-deck, towards Michelle's workstation, where she would be sitting typing or talking on the phone, tucking her curly hair behind her ear... But then something comes up. Something that no one else can do. There's always something.  
  
It was so much easier for Jack. He didn't have a... "Family..." Tony thought and felt horrible for even thinking about it. Sure there was Kim, but she lived on her own and there was no one who'd be waiting for him when he came home. It wasn't the same when Jack worked the whole night through, Tony admitted it. He decided to pick up the pace and get home as soon as possible. He'd make this up for her.  
  
Michelle walked down the corridors. She couldn't express her feeligns right now, she felt like smashing things or throwing something at someone. God, she was angry. She walked down to the parking hall.

"Please, Jack, be still here." She tried to look for Jack with no luck.

"Going home?"

Michelle turned around to see who she was speaking to. "Oh, Lilah, you almost scared me. I was just looking for Jack, it seems that Tony's gonna work all night, so I was looking for a ride."

"Men.." Lilah smiled. "I can give you a ride, I was just heading home myself."

Michelle didn't know what to say. She didn't really know Lilah, they usually just exchanged few words in the coffee-room, that's it, she was actually amazed that she'd remembered her name. Lilah... Something.. The last name had slipped her mind. Michelle look quickly for Jack, but as she didn't want to take a cab she decided to go with Lilah. She wasn't really a fan of getting into strangers' cars, but Lilah wasn't really a stranger.  
  
She wasn't sure what to talk about with Lilah, as they were driving. The small-talk never came easy to her and she was still feeling a bit angry and frustrated to analyse men or work or both. Though she didn't really feel Lilah was into gossiping or chit-chatting, she somehow looked like a more serious type of a person. Nothing like Kim, for instance, Michelle smiled. Kim was always up for a little chat.  
  
"You can drop me off here." Michelle pointed to a beautiful house, which had been painted light blue last spring. It was a really nice neighborhood: extremely neat lawns and white picked fences. They had to hire one of the neighborhood kids to mow their lawn once in a while to keep their neighbors happy.  
  
"So we'll see at work tomorrow?" Lilah asked.

"Yeah, Good night and thanks for the ride, you're a life saver!" Michelle smiled.

"Don't mention it!" Lilah said.  
  
She drove away and Michelle started to walk towards the house. It was dark but she could see the flowers needed some watering some time soon or they'd end up dead.

"Maybe I should get some plastic ones.." she thought as she checked the mailbox and carried the envelopes whilst going through her purse to find the keys. She opened the door and kicked off her shoes. What a relief! She left her keys and the purse on the table as she started to go through the mail.

"Phone bill, it's gonna be massive.." She mumbled as she went through the envelopes. One was plain white and it didn't have a stamp on it, so someone had to have brought it to the mail-box personally. "Mr. And Mrs. Almeida" said the envelope. No one had taken any notice on the fact that Michelle hadn't changed her lastname. It was still Dessler, but it didn't really bother her to be called Mrs. Almeida.  
  
She ripped the envelope open. It was a letter. Michelle stared at it in a shock.

"What the hell are they thinking?!" She said aloud. She couldn't believe it. It was a petition from the people of their street. It had at least twenty names written on it demanding Tony and Michelle to cut down the old oak tree from their backyard. Apparently it was shading the other neighbors' backyards and there was also a risk that it would fall down causing damage to other people's property. Wasn't it enough that they'd hired someone to mow their lawn?!  
  
This was just what she needed. Michelle thought the tree was beautiful, though she hadn't had much time to sit under it. In fact she had had hardly any time to sit around their backyard planting flowers, watering them and taking care of them like the other wifes did. She didn't have time for this! She was hardly ever home for God's sake!  
  
She walked to the back door throwing the jacket and some extra clothing she was wearing onto the sofa. She didn't switch the lights on – she didn't want to disturb the neighbors anymore than she had to. They had a strict policy on keeping the backyard and porch-lights off after 10 pm. If one wanted to have a party one should ask others permission first: no music, nothing after 10 pm. Preferably not after 9 pm, to be honest. Otherwise it was a lovely place to live. A lovely place to raise children. If they'd have enough time to have children. Michelle sighed bitterly.  
  
She tried to find a pair of slippers but as she couldn't find a single pair, she stepped on the wet grass barefoot. The ground was a bit cold which almost made her turn around to get that jacket. She still had that letter on her hand as she walked to the oak tree. Sure it was old, but did it need to go down, she wondered. She walked round the tree letting her hand feel the tree's bark.  
  
The night was quiet, maybe too quiet. It was a bit chilly too and Michelle found herself shivering. She was about to turn around and walk back inside as a bright white light blinded her. Next a heat wave struck her down throwing rubble towards her. Something hard slit her right arm. The sound of the blast came to her next as the two-storey house blew up in pieces.


	2. It All Gets a Bit Complicated

"Look, I don't like where this is going." Chase talked on his cell-phone anxiously. "You said..."

"I know what I said!" The voice in the other end interrupted. "But if YOU hadn't screwed things up, everything would have gone the way we planned!"

Chase didn't reply.

"You thought she wouldn't notice or did you just forget to cover your tracks?"  
  
"Look, ok, it was my bad..." Chase sighed. "But I fixed it right away, so I don't think that anyone else..."

"Fine, but this is the situation now and we'll have to work it from here. Listen up kid, I want you to handle her, you get it?"

"Yeah, I get it. But what about Michelle? I don't think she had time to..."

"She's been taken care of as we speak." The voice interrupted him again. The man on the other end sounded impatient.

"What do you mean.. But you promised..." Chase started knowing he sounded like an immature kid.  
  
"Enough of that already! I told you to take care of Chloe the minute she started getting suspicious but because of your actions..."  
  
"Stop!" Chase was getting nervous. "I'll handle things. But it's over then. By tomorrow I'll be out of here!"

"That was the plan, wasn't it?" the voice said calmly. "Just get your acts together and.."

Suddenly Chase heard a familiar voice behind him. "I gotta go now.."  
  
"Chase, wait up!" Kim shouted as she saw Chase walking away from her. He was talking to his cell-phone. Chase stopped, put the phone away and turned around.

"What's the matter, Kim?" he asked.

Kim slowed down and started to walk towards him. She had packed her things and was ready to leave. "Nothing, I mean, I've been unable to find you all day. Where've you been? Who were you talking to?"

"What? No one... "Chase said trying not to sound uneasy. "I've been here all day, what do you mean?"

Kim noticed a weird expression on her boyfriend's face. "Oh.. Just.. Is everything ok? No one seemed to know where you were so I assumed..."

"You assume too much, sweetie." Chase kissed her sweetly reassuring her.

Kim smiled her widest smile: "I was worried, y'know?"

"Don't be, I'm a grown man and I can take care of myself" Chase stroked Kim's cheek. "What if you went home ahead and I'll catch you up later?"  
  
"What? Why?"

"Tony asked me to do something and I wanna get it done tonight. Don't be mad?"

Kim was a bit disappointed but how could she ever be mad at Chase. She smiled and kissed him briefly. "I'll wait for you, don't be late."  
  
Michelle lay silently on the ground and tried to breath. The air was filled with ash and smoke and she could taste the burning wood in her mouth. "Oh my God.." She cried to herself. The oak tree guarded her like there hadn't been an explosion at all. The house, or what used to be a house, was on fire. The upper storey had collapsed and there were only the southern walls of the house keeping it standing. The rubble of the chimney falling down had taken the other end with it. Her arm hurt badly as she tried to take cover behind the tree. Someone had blown their house up! She felt dizzy – her head was spinning. She didn't dare to stand up, but she managed to lean to the tree that had probably just saved her life by providing her some shelter from the blast. She closed her eyes - this was not happening to her!  
  
Alex Peterson woke up from the sofa. The TV was on but that definitely wasn't the TV. It was like a thunderstorm trough a megaphone, better yet, it sounded like something had exploded. He walked to the front porch, but he wasn't the only one, suddenly everone was awake and outside staring at the sky. It was dark but he could see what the fuss was all about. A huge blaze told everybody the obvious: something was on fire. Alex changed quickly his jogging pants on and grabbed a coat from the rack. This was something worth seeing maybe even worth taking a few photos too, he thought taking his camera with him.

At first he considered walking but took the car instead. Luckily he had just left it on the driveway, instead of driving it to the garage, when he had dropped Margie and the kids at the airport. It was Aunt Julie's 60th birthday, he was glad he didn't have to attend there. He couldn't believe how some people could talk about their digestion for hours. She always made him feel uncomfortable so he had mumbled something about work and asked Margie to pass his congratulations to Julie. He turned the car to the street he believed the accident had happened. Nothing, and he really meant nothing, ever happened here and his heart was beating fast.

There it was: a huge fire ate the house, or the ruins of what used to be a house. He didn't want to park the car too close. He wanted to be sure he wouldn't be in the way when the police cars and the firemen started flooding to the scene. Alex took his camera and checked how many photos he'd still have left. Only four. "Damn those ducks", he thought. They'd been in the park last week and he'd taken at least twenty photos of some stupid ducks eating bread crumbs.  
  
Alex took few cautious steps towards the burning house. It was funny really. He'd seen an exploded building before. That was when they lived in New York and the youth center Margie volunteered at was blown up in some stupid gang fights. That was one of the reasons why they had moved. This was nothing like that youth center. It was like all these other houses had a magic cover on them. He took a closer look on the adjacent houses. Apart from a broken window and ash-covered walls they were in excellent shape. You'd think that something had happened to them as well? "One damn lucky accident." He muttered.  
  
Tony gathered the papers on his desk and handed them over to the new girl he'd been helping all day. "Ok, so have a look on these and go them through, will ya?"  
  
"Sure, Tony, I'm on it!"

Tony looked the clock which was ticking on his office wall: 00:25. "No don't, they're not that important." Kathy's enthusiasm was annoying Tony a bit, but he was glad that someone managed to maintain a happy face all day long. "Just go home and get some sleep. You can do 'em first thing tomorrow."

"Ok." Kathy smiled and pointed the clock. "Technically I'd go through them first thing today."

"You're right. Yeah.. Better get some sleep myself!" Tony forced himself to smile. He couldn't wait to get home. He felt so bad for being such an idiot earlier and letting Michelle leave like that. Maybe he'd even pop in a flowershop and surprise her with roses. He still didn't feel that tired though. "Must be due to that coffee", he thought, but he knew he'd need some sleep. He couldn't wait to tuck in next to his beautiful wife. The new shift was already working full speed when he took his jacket, wallet and the car keys and closed the door to his office.  
  
Chloe finished her curry as she watched George playing with his own tail. She laughed at him. Her mom had been right, a cat did cheer her up. At least there was someone who was always happy to see her when she came home. She threw the cardboard-boxes to the trash. She thanked God that there was an Indian restaurant downstairs open 24/7.

"Come here George, come here!" She tried to lure the cat to her by using a sock as a toy, but George just ignored her. "Fine, play with your tail then!"

She couldn't believe she'd almost forgotten about the cat today. She was having such a crappy day at work, again. She was working on this trail she'd found from the database that had gotten her eye. It was something that led to the Warner Industries' log files, and it seemed there was something fishy there. The problem was she didn't know who to turn to. She had somehow found Chase's name there and didn't know if he was involved in this.. Whatever it was she had come across. But if Chase was in it, maybe Kim was too and she didn't know how Jack would react if she went to his office accusing his daughter's boyfriend and possibly his daughter of something that could turn out to be completely harmless.

"Not a wise career move." Chloe thought. So instead she had complained about a flaw in the database and Jack had promised to have Michelle go through the files. Chloe was reliefed that Michelle was going to check the files, she of all people would notice the same thing she had found. Although Chloe felt a bit guilty for piling more work onto Michelle's desk, when she had enough to do with her own tasks and with Tony storming in and out of the office. Chloe didn't really get along with Tony for some reason, so she avoided any unnecessary contact with him. Michelle had reluctantly checked the files, but found nothing.

"Maybe it's nothing then." She had thought, but there was still something she couldn't really put her finger on. She knew she'd always get in trouble for ignoring the line of command, but she really needed to get this thing off her chest. So she had called Chappelle, who had calmed her down and promised to check the problem, if there even was one. She felt a bit stupid for going over Jack and Tony and disturbing Chappelle over a small, perhaps even futile matter. She had pulled some satellite photos from a warehouse that had been on the files, but before she had had time to go through them any further she had remembered George who was probably tearing down the wallpaper and sharpening his claws to the furniture. She had given the photos over to Kathy, who was new, but yet, or maybe because of it, always up for work.  
  
George had stopped playing and was looking for a perfect place to sleep.

"You can sleep next to me!" Chloe laughed and grapped the kitten and carried him to the bedroom. Suddenly she heard a knock on the door. It was way past midnight and she got a bit spooked. She put George onto the bed and walked to the door.

"Who is it?" she yelled through the door.

"It's just me, Chase. I'm sorry to disturb you and I'm sorry if I woke you up, but there's something urgent I need to talk to you about!"

Chloe was taken aback. What was Chase doing here? How did he know where she lived?

She opened the door: "What in the name of God are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry for being rude to you earlier today."

He did look genuinely sorry, Chloe thought. "You could've just called, you know?"

"Well, um.. I was on my way home and I knew you had left earlier so I thought I'd drop by... As I was in the neighborhood anyway... Besides I wanted to give you these." Chase handed over a bunch of flowers. Chloe looked at him astonished. What was going on? Maybe she had hit her head or something. Maybe HE had hit HIS head! Chase was bringing her flowers? She had absolutely no idea what to say. The man was bringing her flowers at almost 1 a.m! She was more than puzzled.

"Um.. How.. Nice." She managed to smile. "I'll just put them into water." She turned around and walked towards the kitchen.

"I'm sorry..." Chase started as he walked inside.

"Yeah.. You said that already." Chloe muttered. She looked at him through the hall-mirror just in time to see him pull out his gun, aim and shoot. The flowers flew through the air landing just on top of her dead body.


	3. A Damsel in Distress

Author's note: Thanks for the reviews! I'm sorry for killing Chloe, that wasn't part of the original plan, I don't know what happened :) Please let me know how you like the story so far!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The flickering lights of the police cars and fire fighters arriving colored the night sky. Alex had already taken three photos and he had been saving the last one to catch some heroic action but then he'd gotten a brilliant idea. Now he was sneaking in the backyard of the Reynolds' who were on a holiday in Greece. Margie had promised to water their plants and that task had now been passed on to him. The Reynolds' house was just behind the house that was now being eaten by the flames. So the backyards of the two houses were only separated by a wooden fence. "A whole new angle to the incident." He thought as he got through the yard to the fence. The sight was a slight disappointment but he raised the camera and snapped a photo. He had expected seeing, he didn't really no what, something that might have added a sense of extra drama and despair to the photo. Maybe he could have even sold the photos to the papers. If only he had had another roll of film.  
  
The firefighters were at the front of the house trying to save what was left, which wasn't much. He was ready to leave, he didn't dare to cross the fence and he definitely didn't want to get in trouble for being somewhere where he shouldn't have been. And besides, Margie and the kids were probably at Julie's already. He'd give her call and tell her what had happened as soon as he got back to the house. As he was about to turn around, something got his eye. Something had moved near the big tree. It was dark but there definitely was something. He leaned over the fence to get a closer look and he almost fell over to the other side as he realized what it was he saw. At first he wasn't quite sure but then there was no doubt about it. He could pick out of the darkness that there was someone lying on the ground or, actually, leaning against the stem of the tree.  
  
Alex had been so intrigued by the excitement of the night that he hadn't really thought about the victims, that is the family living in the house. He jumped over the fence and rushed towards the tree. It was a woman in her thirties, dark, kinda curly hair and dressed in a black skirt and sleevless shirt. Her face was covered in ash and blood, there was a cut bleeding in her forehead as well as in her right arm. Her eyes were closed but she was breathing heavily and Alex sighed in relief: at least she wasn't dead. He tried to wake her up by shaking her from the shoulders. His hands were trembling from fear. He should've just stayed home tonight.  
  
Michelle felt a stabbing pain in her arm and she moaned. The shaking stopped and she slowly tried to open her eyes. They were swollen from tears. Her entire body ached.

"Where am I?" She whispered in a weak voice. She was completely disoriented for awhile until she heard the raging fire behind her.

"You were in an accident. Don't worry, I'll go get some help!" Alex was trying hard not to panic as he stood up.

"No, wait." Michelle gasped. It all came back to her – the explosion, the death that she'd escaped, everything. She looked at Alex, who, if possible, was more upset than she was. She didn't know whether she could trust him, but at this point she had no other choice.

"Listen." She paused to gather her thoughts. Alex crouched down beside her so he could hear what she was saying. "I can't go to the hospital right now..."

Michelle tried to sit straight. "There are some people who probably think I just died in there few minutes ago and I..."

"Stop, I don't understand." Alex interrupted. "What if I just go and get the paramedics, you'll be alright, you stay here and I'll be back in a minute."

"No, listen to me!" Michelle almost cried. "I – can't – go – to – the hospital. Not right now! The house, the explosion, it was no accident!"

She tried to make him understand, he had to understand.

Alex shook his head incredulously but Michelle continued: "It wasn't an accident, do you get it? I was supposed to die in there..."

She took a deep breath and looked him into his eyes. "What's your name?"

"Alex... Peterson. I live just around the corner, I was just... " He was surprised his voice sounded almost normal, while his heart was thumping wildly. He turned his head and tried to look for his camera. It lay on the ground near the fence. He figured he'd dropped it when he jumped over the fence.

"Look, Alex. My name is Michelle. I work for the CTU and I need you to help me out here. If the people who tried to kill me find out that I'm still alive, they'll probably come after me again. So you must understand why I can't go to the hospital?"

Alex didn't know what to say. What people, he wanted to ask. Were this not a safe place to live? What in the name of God had just happened? Why would somebody want to kill her? What did this all mean? How did he get involved in all this? The questions were rolling in his head. He looked at this young woman who could hardly talk not to mention stand on her own. She had survived an explosion, lost her home and who knows what else, and here he was trying desperately to find a way out.

"I have a first aid kit in the car." He said looking at Michelle. "I can drive you to my place, if there really is people after you, then you'd better get the hell out of here." Michelle managed to get a faint smile on her face.  
  
Kim woke up as Chase opened the front door and tried to tiptoe in. She stared at the darkness but didn't get up. She had waited for him for awhile and then got tired. It was just like with Jack. Her father had never got home in time. She and her mother practically lived without him. It was always work that came first. And when Teri died it had just gotten worse. She tried, God she tried, but why was it all so difficult?  
  
The bedroom door opened and Kim closed her eyes pretending she was asleep. She could hear Chase walk away to the bathroom and turning the shower on. She loved him but sometimes it was hard to live with him. Lately he was always somewhere, anywhere but with her , like he was avoiding her. It felt like he was hiding something from her, but then, when he looked at her and smiled she felt embarrassed and stupid for even thinking about things like that. She'd let her heart decide once again. She closed her eyes and tried to get some sleep.  
  
The roses weren't that pretty, but Tony was sure that Michelle would appreciate his effort. It was the only decent bouquet in the shop he'd found, but the shopkeeper had reassured him that it would do the trick. "It's none of your god damn business whether they're gonna 'do the trick'" he'd felt like saying, but didn't and just paid for the overpriced flowers. His personal life was his business, nobody else's. He didn't feel like fighting tonight so he had shut his mouth. That was something he'd ought to do more often, he smiled as he turned the car to the street where they lived in. The smile faded away quickly when he saw the police-cars, the people who were standing on the street with just their robes on and the firemen extinguishing the smouldering house, his house. He stopped the car and walked towards the house. He wanted to run but his feet weren't obeying his orders anymore.

"Sir, you're gonna have to stay behind the line." Said one of the officers as Tony ignored the plastic tape that prevented the bystanders from interfering or disturbing the work of both the police and the firefighters.  
  
"I'm agent Tony Almeida from CTU." Tony heard himself saying. "What's going on?"

"Wait, I'll get the commanding officer." Said the man walking away.

Tony stood still watching the house he and Michelle had bought together. He couldn't believe this was the same house. Maybe he'd taken a wrong turn somewhere on the way home. This couldn't be his house, their home.

"John Hamilton, LAPD." Said an elder man reaching his hand towards Tony. They shook hands. "May I ask you sir, what the counter terrorist unit is doing here?"

"What's the situation?" Tony said ignoring the man's question.

"The neighbors reported that about an hour ago they heard an explosion. It's too early to say what caused it but as you can see we've got the situation covered. The fire is under control, the house on the other hand is completely destroyed but the other houses seem to have damaged none or very little. I assure you that the situation is under the circumstances well taken care of..."

Tony listened quietly, he couldn't take his eyes off the house. Even an idiot would have known it was 'completely destroyed'. There was no way anyone could have survived from that, he knew that. He just couldn't believe it.

"Were there anyone inside?"

"The neighbors claim they saw a... "the officer quickly went through his notes: "A woman, about thirty years old who supposedly is one of the residents, enter the house just minutes before the accident. Wait, I have her name somewhere..."

"Michelle." Tony said in a desperate voice. He could feel the tears running down his cheeks. "Michelle Dessler, she is.. was my wife."


	4. At Times Like These

Jack cursed the whole night as he drove back to CTU. Not only had he been working all day long but just as he'd got back home and was getting ready to go to sleep the phone rang. How typical of of this job! He just couldn't catch a break. At times like these he really thought about retiring early and heading for, he wasn't sure, Europe, for instance. There was nothing holding him back here. Kim had her own life with Chase and after Teri, Jack just hadn't been ready for a relationship. He still mourned over his lost wife. They had had something that wasn't replaceable and whenever he got involved with someone, he couldn't help comparing and feeling there was something missing. It felt impossible for him to enjoy and cherish a relationship as it was without looking back what he had had. But it was long gone, he realized that. CTU was his home, the people who worked there were his friends but he felt extremely bitter about the fact that the place had almost distroyed his marriage, ruined his relationship with his daughter and finally killed the woman he, no matter what, loved more than life. He'd learned how to breathe again, but every step in that building, seeing the walls that had seen and heard everything, it was something unbearable. He often needed to get away. But did he have the courage to leave once and for all?  
  
He parked his car in the parking hall and entered the building he both loved and hated.  
  
"So, I'm back. Again. What is it that was too urgent and damn important to be told over the phone?"  
  
Jack sounded extremely fed up, but the ranking agent in field ops didn't take much notice on his mental state. "Agent Calvin and agent Brown have not responded to our attempts to locate them."  
  
"Agent.. Who?" Jack tried to collect his thoughts. He could've seriously needed the sleep.  
  
"The two men you sent to the area where had been some problems with the satellite imagery earlier today. We haven't been able to contact them in over half an hour. They were on to something right before we lost them."  
  
"Maybe there's just no signal." Jack stated the obvious. He was trying not to think of the worst case scenario this time, although he acknowledged the seriousness of the situation.  
  
"Very funny, Jack "  
  
Jack sighed: "Half an hour ago? Did you ran an autotrace?"  
  
"Yeah. The guys at IT got in hold of their last location just a while ago, that's the reason I needed you down here. We need a permission to send a team there to see what's going on."  
  
"Yeah, you have my authorization, do whatever you need to find them." No sleep tonight either, he realized. "You called Chase in yet?"  
  
"No. I contacted you first, but I think if we send another team out we need him here too for back-up."  
  
Jack nodded. "I'll call him here. And I'd better contact Tony too, just in case."  
  
He walked up to his office and grabbed the phone and dialed a very familiar number. The phone rang waking up Kim and Chase. "You get it honey." Kim mumbled without opening her eyes. Chase reached over to the phone: "Hello?" "Chase? It's Jack, did I wake you up?" Jack asked secretly enjoying for ruining other people's sleep as well. "Yeah, you kinda did." Chase switched the night lamp on. His pulse was slowly accelerating. Had someone found Chloe yet? He'd thought no one would miss her for at least 12 hours! Had he missed something, had he screwed this thing too? "So, what's the matter Jack? Is something wrong?"  
  
Kim opened her eyes and started paying attention to the conversation: "It's my dad? Let me talk to him!"  
  
Chase tried to shoo her away.  
  
"We have a minor problem at CTU that could turn into a major one soon. We are sending a team out on the field and we need more personnel to back up the mission."  
  
"Wait, I thought you went home?" What was Jack doing awake? He should have been sleeping completely unaware of everything that was going on! Chase got nervous, but tried to maintain a cool tone in his voice.  
  
"What? He isn't home sleeping safe and sound? Hand me the phone, Chase, I need to talk to my father!"  
  
"Kim, please.. I'm trying to talk to Jack!"  
  
"Chase are you still there?" Jack asked smirking. He had heard his daughter's voice in the background. Kim was a handful, he admitted that. It had taken a long time to accept that someone else besides himself could take care of her. He'd been a little suspicious about Chase at first, but he'd put the thoughts aside for Kim. She's happy, that's all that counts, he thought.  
  
"Yeah, I'm sorry. What were you saying again?"  
  
"Um.. Well we're currently understaffed and could use some reinforcement. Tell Kim to get dressed right away otherwise it'll take hours before you two can leave. And tell her her hair's just fine, no matter what she thinks!"  
  
"Ok, we'll be there in.. "Chase looked at Kim. "Well... As soon as we can. Oh, Jack?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"What's this all about?"  
  
"I'll tell you when you get here."  
  
They hang up.  
  
"Well?" Kim asked anxiously.  
  
"I'm sorry, no sleep for us tonight. We have to head back to CTU, they need some extra help on something."  
  
Kim looked herself from the bedroom mirror and tried to arrange her locks into place.  
  
"Jack said they look fine" Chase smiled at her.  
  
"Oh, what does he know about hair-dos?"  
  
Tony sat in the backseat of a police car. He stared at the house quietly not knowing what to do or say. He couldn't believe this, this wasn't happening to him. It was someone else's house, someone else's wife, it wasn't his. Someone would soon be telling him that his house would indeed be intact, standing perfectly in it's place, somewhere else. Then he would go home and Michelle would wait for him and she'd still be a bit mad, but when she'd see the flowers they'd kiss and make up.  
  
His bottom lip quivered and he tried to take a deep breath to hide the state he was in. He wasn't sure why he even cared anymore what other people thought. Neighbors had gathered around the place curiously trying to get a glimpse of what had happened. Policemen and firefighters were running and shouting orders. Tony did not see them though. He was looking for a particular face from the crowd. He was waiting for seeing those beautiful dark eyes and that smile you could just die for. But she wasn't there no matter how hard he tried to look for her.  
  
His cell-phone rang and his heart nearly stopped beating.  
  
"Yeah.." He answered.  
  
"Tony? It's Jack, I tried to reach you from your home phone to catch you both, but I couldn't get through. Something wrong with the phone lines?"  
  
Tony looked at the house that had collapsed into rubble and for some weird reason he felt like laughing. Yeah, there surely was something wrong with the phone lines.  
  
"Well, I'm actually not in the house at the moment." The sudden urge to laugh changed as quickly as it had arrived. He tried to swallow the tears. He wanted to tell Jack what had happened. He wanted to tell what had happened to Michelle, but he couldn't. If he said it aloud it would be like admitting Michelle was really gone. But she couldn't be gone. She was waiting for him. She had to be waiting for him.  
  
"Tony, are you ok? Where are you?"  
  
"I'm just... "Tony tried to focus on breathing. "I'm fine, what's up?"  
  
Jack could hear there was something wrong with Tony. "I'm not buying that. Look, we go way back, I know you. There's something wrong. I wanna know what it is!"  
  
"No, seriously Jack, I'm just... Really tired, ok? Did you have something to tell me?"  
  
Jack realized he wasn't getting anything out of Tony and the conversation wasn't going anywhere at the moment. "I need you and Michelle here, we're having some problems, it doesn't necessarily mean anything yet, but I'd like the staff to stand by."  
  
"Yeah, sure." Tony didn't even bother to ask what it was all about. Jack put down the phone worried. 


	5. Reflections

Alex had driven the car all the way to the garage to avoid prying neighbors from seeing what he had lieing on the backseat. He closed the garage door before helping Michelle up and walked her to the kitchen.  
  
"Can you sit?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm feeling better already." Michelle said lying to calm Alex down. She still felt weak and dizzy.  
  
Alex went through the kitchen cupboards in search for bandages. He cleaned Michelle's wounds and tied them carefully.  
  
"Um.. I can show you the bathroom if you want to, you know, freshen up?"  
  
"Ok, thanks." Michelle tried to stand up, she knew she needed to get up and going, there was something serious going on. She was still trying to realize what had happened. She needed to contact CTU. God, she needed to call Tony.  
  
Alex led her through the master bedroom. He noticed her clothes were covered in dried blood: "If you need to change you can borrow my wife's clothes."  
  
Kim walked inside CTU with Chase. He'd been awfully quiet in the car. She'd asked about it but he'd just said he was tired. He had been working a lot more lately, Kim reminded herself. "I should be more understanding", she thought. She felt there was something on his mind, but she'd let him tell her when he was ready. She didn't want to push him.  
  
"Hi Jack, what's up?" Chase greeted Jack. Kim noticed his voice sounded slightly nervous.  
  
"Hi daddy, we thought you went home already?" Kim smiled trying not sound too overprotecting. Ever since Jack's heart problems, she had taken her father's well-being very seriously.  
  
"Yeah, well I did. But obviously I didn't stay there too long." Jack looked tired but tried to cheer up for Kim. "Anyway, I'm still waiting for a word from the field ops, and also, Tony and Michelle aren't here yet, so you might want to have a cup of coffee to wake you up. I don't feel like explaining the situation a dozen of times, so..."  
  
"Yeah, ok. We'll do just that, won't we Chase." Kim looked at Chase, who forced a smile on his face. "You want anything, dad?"  
  
"No, I'm fine, just had a cup a minute ago."  
  
Jack watched Kim and Chase to head for the coffee room.  
  
Michelle looked at her reflection from the bathroom mirror. She was a mess, but she guessed that was completely understandable. Her arm still hurt but she tried not to think about it. The past events were still on her mind and she tried to rationalize them. "Was the attack targeted at me or at Tony or at both of us?" she kept thinking. "There had to be someone watching, I had hardly went inside when the house exploded. If Tony hadn't been such an ass all night, if she hadn't stormed out of the office, if the stupid neighbors hadn't meddled with their business and sent that letter, if she hadn't got a ride from Lilah and instead decided to wait for Tony, then..." Michelle paused. "Lilah?" She didn't really know her, but when she started to think about it, it all made sense. She realized something else too, if Lilah was involved, she couldn't work alone, could she? Those explosives were definetely planted by a professional, they were so accurate and it was made sure that no one would survive the blast.  
  
"Are you okay in there?" Alex knocked on the door and waited for an answer.  
  
"I'm fine, thanks." Michelle gave a brief look on the small wound on her forehead. It had stopped bleeding. She opened the door. "Um.. I found these from the closet and I thought..."  
  
"Sure, Margie wouldn't mind."  
  
Michelle had found a pair of trousers and a sweater from Alex's wife's wardrobe. They weren't her size and she felt she would've needed a belt, but she could manage. At least she could get rid of the sweaty, dirty and bloody clothes she'd been wearing.  
  
"Alex, may I use the phone, please?"  
  
"Yeah, sure it's this way."  
  
"I could get you some snack if you want." Kim tried. Chase was sitting over his coffee cup not saying a thing. He had to make a phone call, he had to think this over. But he didn't want to rush. "This could be nothing", he thought. "How could've he found out. There was no way he could know. But this is Jack we're talking about." He reminded himself.  
  
"Chase?"  
  
"What?!" Chase snapped.  
  
Kim startled: "Nothing, forget it."  
  
Chase wanted to apologize, he did care for her and didn't want to hurt her feelings. But he had made his choice and he was going to stick with it.  
  
"Tony!" Jack rushed from the field ops with a bunch of papers in his lap. "Glad to see you here this quickly. I'll just go and get Kim and Chase, we'll meet at the conference room 2. This has just turned into priority one mission."  
  
Tony was standing in the doorway. He nodded but Jack had already turned his back on him and was speeding towards the coffee room. Tony walked the stairs up to his office, opened the door and switched the lights on. He took off his coat and threw it towards his chair. Ofcourse it missed the chair and fell on the floor. He didn't want to pick it up. He would need to walk behind the desk to do that. They had tried to keep their relationship and marriage to themselves. Although through the matching wedding rings they had told the world they loved each other, but they still preferred to steal a kiss from each other in the quietness of closed doors. They wanted to have something that was completely theirs, not CTU's. That was probably the reason why Tony only had one picture on his desk. It wasn't even a wedding picture. It was Michelle and him on their honeymoon. He had wrapped his arm around her and they were smiling to the camera. The week had been amazing. The sun had shone every day. They had shut their cell phones off and forgotten about work. She looked dazzling. But Tony didn't want to see the photo, not now.  
  
He walked down the stairs and headed to the conference room. He closed the door behind him, Jack, Chase and Kim were sitting already behind the table.  
  
"We can start now?" Jack asked while going through the papers. "As you might already know, we had some problems with the satellite imagery earlier tonight. I sent two agents to check the location and some time ago we lost contact with them. We sent a team there and unfortunately the field ops just informed me that agent Calvin and agent Brown have been found dead. The area has been searched thoroughly and it seems somebody left there with a hurry. Now, we're investigating..."  
  
"Dad, I'm sorry to interrupt you, but aren't we gonna wait for Michelle?" Kim asked. Chase straightened up in his chair and avoided looking at Tony's direction. "I mean, this sounds really bad, I'm not sure if I can cope here alone. Didn't you say she was coming too?"  
  
Jack lifted his head from the papers and seemed to just realize that Tony had come alone. "I did. Is she not coming, Tony?"  
  
There was so much that Tony wanted to say, so much emotions he hadn't dealt with, but he was unable to find the words. "No... um.. I don't.. I don't think she's coming."  
  
Jack looked at his friend and could see the grief behind his eyes, although he had done a lot of work trying to cover it. But Jack had been there himself, he knew.  
  
"What do you mean she's not coming. I thought this was everyone's top priority at the moment?" Kim asked looking at Tony and then at her father.  
  
"Tony...?" Jack stood up leaving the papers on the table. "What has happened?" He put his hand on Tony's shoulder. "Tony?"  
  
Tony tried to avoid Jack's eyes. Finally he just sighed deeply. Their eyes met. "Jack... Michelle is... She's gone, Jack." He said in a desperate voice.  
  
Jack knew before Tony even opened his mouth. It was all over Tony's face.  
  
"What do you mean 'gone'?" Kim blurted out just before she realized she should have kept her mouth shut.  
  
Tony looked at her. "Kim, she's gone, she's dead, she blew up with our house, she burned alive, she's permanently resigned this job, what more do you want me to say?!"  
  
Kim blinked her eyes. Tony had never shouted at her like that before. She also couldn't really understand what he was saying.  
  
"Michelle's dead...?" Her voice was shaking. Chase sat quietly on his seat keeping his eyes glued to the table.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me Tony? I'm sorry." Jack tried to comfort him but he knew there wasn't much to say. "Tell me what happened."  
  
"I don't know. I just... "Tony took a moment to collect his thoughts. "I just went home and there were police men and firefighters and all those people staring and she's gone, Jack! She's gone. They said she went inside and a second later the house blew up. There was nothing left, Jack, I saw it. Nothing. It was all destroyed! I don't know. If only I had just left in time, you know. If I hadn't hurt her feelings, she wouldn't have left in such a hurry... It's just... I don't know anymore, I just..."  
  
Tony looked as if he was about to break down. "Excuse me." He said and exitted the room.  
  
"Tony!" Jack shouted after him, but the door had already closed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note: I haven't really seen the season 3 yet (we're still struggling to get through season 2 here) so I have used my artistic freedom with Chase and also with Chloe (but I killed her, so problem solved there!) and also, I don't know what's our lovely Kim like when she's all grown up and working with daddy, but I figured she can't have changed that much from season 2, so I imagine she's still a bit childish and naive (and sometimes lacks common sense, forgive me from saying, but God! She was just locked down in a private bomb shelter with a freakin' forest-weirdo and right after that she gets involved in a hostage-situation and... Well, I think you get it?)


	6. Bad Connections

Tony rushed through the endless corridors. He wasn't sure where he was going, he felt extremely confused but mostly he was angry. He was angry at Kim for asking stupid questions, at CTU, he was even angry at Michelle, who had stormed out of the building and gotten herself killed but above all, he was angry at himself. Suddenly he stopped. This was where his feet had led him. It was a silent corner that had witnessed a sweet and shy kiss years back. He still remembered her lips on his, he could recall the taste of tears she'd shed. He wished he could hold her again in that same spot, wrap his arms around her and just hold her and never let go of her. But there was only air left, nothing to hold on to. Tony leaned on the wall and buried his face in his hands and burst into tears.  
  
Chase glanced furtively over his shoulder while he opened a door to an empty room and sneaked inside. He took his cell-phone and dialed a number:  
  
"Hello?" Said the voice in the other end.  
  
"Jack is onto us!" Chase hissed on the phone.  
  
"Calm down! What do you mean? I thought Jack was not a problem here?"  
  
"Well, obviously he is!" Chase paced around the room nervously. "They're investigating the warehouse, it's only a matter of time before they find out. We must do something now!"  
  
The voice was silent for a while. "What is he doing at the moment?"  
  
"I don't know. I think he went after Tony. What the hell did you do to Michelle?!"  
  
"I did what had to be done. You're in no position to question my actions. Now, tell me he won't find anything from the database. Everything's covered there?"  
  
"Yeah. I think, but if he starts to investigate he'll put two and two together and.."  
  
"Then see he's busy on something else! Right now, we're continueing as planned. Try to handle things there for a couple of hours, as soon as I meet the buyers we can proceed. But we can't do anything right now, we'd just be drawing attention towards us! They won't find anything from the warehouse just don't do anything stupid."  
  
"Dad, where's Tony?" Kim entered Jack's office. Her voice teetered slightly. Jack put the phone down and walked to his daughter.  
  
"He needs some time to think, I'll go and talk to him in a minute. You ok, sweet heart? I know she was your friend too."  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine." Kim tried to remain calm, her father had enough on his mind without her acting like a silly young girl.  
  
"Go home, Kim. Get some rest, will you?" Jack tried, he could see through her. This was painful for him too, but he wanted to give Kim a break.  
  
"What would I do in an empty house by myself? And you need us all here in this case. This is my work, I can handle this, I don't need you protecting me, dad!" Kim raised her voice a bit to make a point. She was devastated by Michelle's death but she felt that she needed to be doing something helpful.  
  
Jack sighed. He sould've known better, it was his daughter after all. He walked back to his desk and took the phone and hit re-dial button. "Ok. I was just calling Chloe, Michelle checked some files for her earlier today and she pulled the satellite images from the area the two agents were found shot."  
  
"You think the deaths of those agent and... "Kim paused not wanting to say aloud Michelle's name and stating that she was truly gone. "... are somehow connected?"  
  
"It would be too big a coincidence if they weren't. That's why I want to get to the bottom of this." He waited for someone to pick up the phone. "She's not answering."  
  
"Maybe she's asleep?"  
  
"Well then someone's just gonna have to wake her up!" Jack started to sound impatient.  
  
"What if I go down there and pick her up?" Kim asked trying to be useful. She knew she couldn't handle Chloe's work by herself.  
  
"Ok." Jack put the phone down and picked it up again dialing the four-digit- number to field ops. "I'm gonna send someone to check Tony and Michelle's house."  
  
Kim turned to leave.  
  
"Oh, Kim?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Tell Chase I want to see him in my office right away."  
  
Michelle tried to dial Jack's number again but the line was busy. "Who is he talking to?" She dialed Tony's number and waited desperately for him to answer it. The phone rang alone in the pocket of Tony's coat.  
  
"Shit!"  
  
"What's wrong?" Alex looked at her.  
  
"It's just... I don't seem to get in hold of anybody at the moment. Anybody I could trust, that is."  
  
"There's something wrong with the lines?"  
  
Michelle ignored the question and tried to get through, with no luck. She put the phone down and sighed. She wondered if Tony had already left the office, whether he'd seen their house already.  
  
"Alex, I know you've done a lot for me today but could you please drive me to CTU? I have to speak to my husband."  
  
"Sure, no problem, I understand, if this had happened to my wife..." Alex started and then paused. "...I go start the car."  
  
Kim walked through the office and looked for Chase. She didn't know whether Chase had been acting strangely because of Michelle, "We all have our own ways to react on something like this", she thought. But he'd been so tense before too, Kim acknowledged. She picked up a phone from a workstation and dialed Jack's number:  
  
"Jack Bauer."  
  
"Dad, I can't find Chase anywhere. I'm sure he'll turn up in a while, but if I want to get Chloe here before dawn then I'd better get going."  
  
"Yeah, ok. I'll just find him myself."  
  
"Yeah.. If he wonders where I am just tell him I went to pick up Chloe, ok?"  
  
"Sure, I'll tell him."  
  
Jack put the phone down and walked to the door. He'd have to find Tony first and have a chat with him. He knew there was hardly any time to do that, but they were desperately short staffed at the moment and he needed him to focus on the job. How could he ask Tony to do that?  
  
The lights were off at Tony's office so Jack didn't bother to knock. He walked the stairs down to the lower level where he spotted Chase.  
  
"Chase!" Jack shouted to catch Chase's attention.  
  
Chase gave Jack a nervous glance. "What is it Jack?"  
  
"You haven't seen Tony by any chance?"  
  
"Tony? No, not since he left the conference room."  
  
"Ok. I sent a team to check on Tony's house, the warehouse area is also covered and Kim went to get Chloe here. We need to go over those satellite images again and also, Michelle checked something for her earlier today and I want to know what it was and we could also need some extra personnel on site. But now, I have to find Tony and talk with him, can you handle things here?"  
  
"What?!" Chase was going through Jack's words in his mind.  
  
Jack looked at Chase for a moment and wondered if he was fit to take over things for a minute. Chase looked kind of misplaced, but then again, if not Chase, who would he trust to keep CTU up and running, when Tony clearly was out of the game at the moment.  
  
"Can you handle things for a moment here alone?"  
  
"No.. I mean yeah, sure I can, but that wasn't what I meant.. Did you say Kim was going to Chloe's?"  
  
"Yeah, I tried to call her but she didn't answer so Kim went to pick her up. She needs to get her mind out of all that's just happened. Is there a problem?"  
  
"No, no.. There isn't.. Um.. Yeah, sure just go and find Tony. I'll manage. When did you say Kim left?"  
  
Jack gave a examining look at Chase. "Just a minute ago." He was about to say something more, but instead decided to go and find Tony. His daughter's relationship problems were not his problems, that much he had understood while trying to restore his relationship with Kim. And besides, he'd have to find Tony, he owed him that.  
  
Chase watched Jack to leave until he started rushing towards the elevators, he had to find Kim before she'd leave. 


	7. the Log File

Tony had heard Jack's footsteps echoing through the corridors. He was sitting on the ground and leaning to the wall and just staring at the blank wall. Jack had sat next to him but said nothing. Tony knew Jack was busy and he needed to be elsewhere at the moment, yet he still had managed to find the time to look for him and sit next to him. He also knew Jack needed him to be at CTU, working, as always. He needed to focus on the task at hand, but he just couldn't find himself to stand up and act like nothing had happened. Although it was the style in CTU. Just forget for a moment and move on. Think about it later, think about it on your own time. This was the country's time he was wasting.  
  
"Tony..." Jack began. He could hardly find any words, there was no words for situations like these. He of all people knew that. "I know this is painful for you, but as the head of this operation, I need to know if you're fit to work."  
  
Tony was quiet for a while but then turned his head towards Jack and looked straight in his eyes. "If I'm not what will do you about it. Send me home?"  
  
Jack sighed. "Tony, come on. I know what you're going through..."  
  
"Jack, don't. "Tony interrupted him.  
  
Jack usually took no orders from other people, but this time he closed his mouth.  
  
"I know you mean well, Jack. But I just can't see the point anymore..."  
  
"Do it for her, Tony. We need.. I need you to get your mind on this for her."  
  
Kim walked towards her car. She wasn't really a fan of Chloe's but she knew that they'd need her. She acknowledged the fact that Chloe was way more experienced than she was and together they could handle things better. She took the car keys from her purse and unlocked the car.  
  
"Kim!" She heard Chase shouting. She recognized his voice before turning around and seeing him. He was at the other end of the hall and started running towards Kim. "He'd better apologize for his actions", Kim thought and waited by the car.  
  
"What?" Kim asked looking fed up when Chase came closer.  
  
"You're going to pick up Chloe?"  
  
Kim looked at Chase, he probably didn't even care that he'd hurt her feelings.   
"Yeah, I don't see how this concerns you though. " She wasn't going to play this game anymore. "And by the way, my dad wanted to see you in his office."   
  
Kim turned to the car and opened the door. She didn't understand him at the moment, and to be honest, she wasn't going to try either. Atleast not now.  
  
"I saw Jack and he said we can handle things without Chloe, there's no need for you to leave now!"  
  
Kim turned around with a doubting look, which alarmed Chase. He was nervous, he seriously was, she could see that.  
  
"I just talked to my dad and that's not what he said... And you're smart enough to know that we do need her here. What's going on, Chase?"  
  
"Don't go Kim. You can't go."  
  
Chase's face was completely expressionless. He scared Kim.  
  
"I don't know what's wrong with you. And frankly, I couldn't care less!" She yelled at him. "I'm leaving and there's nothing you can do about it!"  
  
She turned again towards the car and was about to get in. Chase took a quick look over the empty parking hall and in a short second he made a decision. He stopped thinking and buried his emotions somewhere deep. There was too much at stake here. He grapped his girlfriend's arm, twitched it back and pushed her head sharply to the car door.  
  
Kim had no time to react. She felt Chase grabbing her arm just before her head hit the car. She couldn't see anything for a while. She tried to fumble away but Chase had a firm grip on her arm. He pushed her to the ground and she could feel the cold ground under her face.  
  
"Chase...?" Kim tried to cry but she hardly could make a hearable sound. She coughed dust from the ground.  
  
Without saying a word Chase took his gun from its holster and pointed it at Kim. Kim felt the cold barrel on her neck and started shaking. This was Chase, this was someone she loved.  
  
"Get up!" Chase said without a trace of hesitation in his voice. "Give me the car keyes."  
  
Kim was scared and her hands were shaking. The keys had dropped on the ground and she bent down to pick them up. She turned around to hand them to Chase but he pushed the barrel on her neck so she'd keep her face towards the car. He took the keys and led Kim to the back of the car and opened the trunk.  
  
"Get in."  
  
"What? Chase, what are you doing? Why are you doing this?"  
  
"I don't wanna tell you twice: get in the trunk. Please, Kim, just do it." For a second Kim could hear a caring tone in his voice but he shook it soon off.  
  
She climbed to the trunk and curled up so she wouldn't get hit by the door Chase slammed shut. The trunk was pitch black, she couldn't see a thing.  
  
Chase sat on the ground. "What have I done?"  
  
"The files have been deleted, but let's see if I can retrieve something from the hard disk."  
  
Jack and Tony watched as one of the staff members still working at IT at this time of night sat in front of Chloe's computer.  
  
"Well, here's something." Both of the men leaned to see what was on the screen.  
  
"A few e-mails, a report for Division..." Jack listed. "Nothing out of the ordinary."  
  
"What's that?" Tony pointed one file.  
  
"Wait a second..." the computer analysist typed something on the keyboard. "It seems to be a log file for a company called Warner International Corporation."  
  
Tony gave Jack a brief look: "The Warner's still freelancing for CIA?"  
  
"Not that I'm aware of. Can you open it."  
  
"No, whatever it was it's gone."  
  
"Ok, thanks. See if you find anything else." Jack pulled Tony aside. "What do you reckon?"  
  
"It's there for a reasion, that's for sure."  
  
"Yeah.. I think it's worth a look. I'm gonna go over there to check the files from their computers. I have a strong feeling about this."  
  
"At this hour? Who you're gonna reach?" Tony asked.  
  
Jack gave him an explaining look: "I'll just have to make some phonecalls."  
  
"Ok." Tony understood. "I'm going with you."  
  
"What? No, you're staying here... "Jack started.  
  
"No, I can't stay here." Tony replied firmly. "Besides you can't handle everything by yourself."  
  
"Neither can you.." Jack said. He looked at Tony who had managed to pull himself together. He wasn't all comfortable with the idea of leaving Chase alone but he reckoned he'd manage with Kim and Chloe here. What's the worst thing that could happen? "Ok, but we'll have to leave now. I'll call Chase from the car."  
  
Jack rushed to his office to get his coat while Tony headed towards his. His coat was still lieing on the floor where he had thrown it. He didn't switch the lights on instead took a deep breath, walked stoutly to the coat and grabbed it.  
  
"I left my car on the street." Jack said as they walked down the stairs to the elevators.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Author's note: ...And they lived happily ever after, the end. No, just kidding :D   
Thanks for the reviews, it's great to know that someone is ACTUALLY reading this. I'm gonna have to take a short break from writing, though, I've got my graduation this weekend and I'm out of town taking entrance exams next week but I'll promise I'll get back to this story probably next weekend at the latest!


	8. Dead On Arrival

Kim sobbed quietly in the trunk. Why was Chase acting like that? What was wrong? What had happened to him? Why had he been so upset about her picking up Chloe? She had no answers, just questions. She didn't know what to do, he couldn't just leave her there, could he? Maybe he could. After what had just happened, Chase could do anything, she was sure of that. She wondered how long it would take to anyone notice she wasn't coming back with Chloe. Maybe Jack would become worried and he'd soon notice her car hadn't left the building. She tried to keep saying that to herself but as the tears she shed wet the cold and dirty carpet on the bottom of the trunk she couldn't be that sure of it anymore.  
  
Jack reached his cell-phone and started dialing a number whilst driving.Tony looked at the lamp posts through the window. They were still on, though it was just minutes from the sunrise. The morning was clear and beautiful and you could see the day was going to be sunny. He was surprised in a way to find himself smiling a sad smile. The smile you smile when something beautiful and special has ended and you're sad, although you knew God would never let you keep something you had all to yourself. It was always just a matter of time when He would notice he'd lost one of His angels and wanted her back. He was sure he could see Michelle's reflection from the car window.  
  
"Hi Kate, it's Jack." Tony gave Jack a short glance to see the expression on Jack's face. He looked as if he was going to handle things in a professional way.  
  
"I'm sorry to wake you up, but CTU needs to check some log-files from Warner computers... Yeah, now, it honestly can't wait." Tony wasn't really sure what had happened between Jack and Kate, though he and Jack were good friends. He knew they'd been close at some point, but then the relationship had just died. "It was D.O.A from the beginning." Jack had said and the issue was never to be brought up again, not by Tony atleast.  
  
"We're already heading there.. Yeah, thanks, we'll meet you there. And Kate... I really appreciate you for doing this.. Bye."  
  
Tony looked at Jack to see if he was going to say anything.  
  
"So she'll help us?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Good."  
  
Chase rinsed his face with cold water in the bathrooms. He felt obnoxious and he had to force himself to look at the mirror hanging over the sink. Was this the person he was raised to be? How could one frustrated moment, one little temptation to earn big bucks in a few days change the course of his life forever? He wasn't even able to look at Kim. She was the sweetest thing. Sure, she could be naive and childish, but he cared for her still, maybe even loved her.  
  
"You don't lock the people you love in the trunk." Chase looked at himself from the mirror. He couldn't leave her there either. It would be just a matter of time until someone would notice Kim's car never left the building.  
  
The sound of his cell-phone startled him: "Chase Edmunds."  
  
"Hi Chase, it's Jack. Has Kim arrived with Chloe yet?"  
  
"Um.." Chase cleared his throat. "No she hasn't, where are you?"  
  
"That's the reason why I'm calling. Me and Tony are going to check some leads we found from Chloe's computer, so you'll just have to keep the place up and running for now. Can you handle everything there?"  
  
"Yeah, we're fine. The teams you sent are still on their assignments and I'm waiting some updates from them soon. Where are you going, Jack?"  
  
"We're heading to the Warner International's. Long story short, we need to have a look on their log-files. I don't know how long we'll be off, so when Kim gets there, tell her to call me a.s.a.p, ok?"  
  
Chase's heart was beating fast but he managed to maintain his voice normal: "Yeah, I'll tell her."  
  
"Shit, shit, shit!" He hit his fist to the wall. He knew once Jack and Tony would find his name from the files he'd be finished. He didn't even want to think what Jack would do to him once he found out about Kim. The thought made him shiver. Sure he could get rid of her like he did with Chloe, but he didn't want to do that. He killed her because he was ordered to kill her and he already felt guilty enough for doing that. He just wanted all this to be over - he wanted his money and then get the hell out of the country. But first he had to take care of Kim and the car.  
  
Jack parked his car to the empty parking lot outside a big building with the words 'Warner International Corporation' on the wall. He recognized a blonde woman standing in front of the main entrance. It had been ages since he'd seen Kate, she still looked beautiful.  
  
"Hi Kate, good to see you."  
  
"Good to see you too, Jack. Well, let's get in then so we won't have to spend all night.. Morning here." She got her keycard and opened the door. The lights were off at the lobby but the sun rising lightened the room just enough for Jack to recognize the familiar places. There hadn't been much changes since he'd last been there.  
  
"There's only one security guard here and one at the airport and I notified them already that we're here, so don't worry. You can have a look at the files at my dad's office in private, if you want."  
  
"You did what?!" The voice shouted at Chase through the phone.  
  
"I had no choice!" Chase hissed trying to keep his voice down. "She was going to find out about Chloe and I couldn't risk that!"  
  
"So you took Jack Bauer's daughter, shoved her to the trunk of her own car and you think that's a smaller risk than she finding out about a dead co- worker? You do know that Jack has killed men from just stepping on his toes, don't you?"  
  
"Look, at the time being..."  
  
"No, you look. I told you not to screw things up, what part of that didn't you understand!??"  
  
Chase was quiet. It was like getting a lecture from dad after not doing your homework correctly. "So, what should I do about this."  
  
There was a short pause on the other end. "How many people there are in the building right now?"  
  
"Right now? Um.. At this time of hour there's only part of the staff working and there are two teams out in the field. Jack and Tony are off- site and Kim and.."  
  
"I asked how many?"  
  
"Ten perhaps? Plus the security. Less than 15. Why?"  
  
"Shut the place down."  
  
"What? I'm not authorized to do that, I don't even have the clearance for that!"  
  
"I'll give you the clearance. Right now, I want no one to leave the building, no one to enter it, no connections anywhere, do – you – understand – me?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"And I don't care what you do with Kimberly Bauer, but keep Jack in the dark. I'm on my way to get the merchandise, I'll send Lilah there, let her in when she gets there."  
  
"I don't need a babysitter."  
  
"It's not your decision to make, you will accept my terms without questioning or you'll go down with murder and treason."  
  
Chase took a deep breath: "I understand."  
  
He hung up and started walking to the parking hall. Jack would probably become suspicious unless he would get a call from Kim some time soon.  
  
Alex opened the car window and entered the security code Michelle had given to her into the device at the parking hall entrance and the door opened slowly. Michelle was sitting in the front seat, breathing heavily. She hated herself for dragging Alex into this, but she also admitted that she could barely walk by herself. Her right arm was still hurting badly, although the wound, which had been somewhat deep, had already stopped bleeding. She noticed her fingers were getting numb and she could barely move the hand at all anymore. It had gotten a lot worse in a short time.  
  
"So what are we going to do next?" Alex asked. This was not the excitement he'd hoped for but he tried to handle the situation the best he could.  
  
"I have to find my husband or Jack Bauer, or preferably both. Or atleast someone I can trust."  
  
"How do you know who you can trust?" Alex asked while driving slowly inside the big hall. There were plenty of room to park.  
  
"I don't, I'll just have to trust my instincts." Michelle smiled. That was a good question, though. Who could she really trust? Tony of course and Jack. Surely she could trust Kim too. She didn't know who were involved but if Lilah, who so conveniently had been there to give her a ride to her almost certain death, was involved, that much she had reasoned, there had to be someone else too. Lilah hardly played a big part at CTU, if someone was to use someone from CTU for information or direct help, he would probably have chosen someone higher. She wished she had her gun to back her up.  
  
"Wait, Alex, stop the car." Michelle noticed a familiar face and stepped out of the car carefully. "Chase, thank God!" She smiled and took a few cautious steps leaning to the car. Alex rushed to help her.  
  
"Michelle..?" Chase stammered. "I thought.... We all thought you were dead."  
  
"I was supposed to be. I don't have the time to explain it all now, are Jack and Tony in?"  
  
"No..." Chase looked as if he'd seen a ghost. His face was pale and he had absolutely no idea what to say or do.  
  
"Where are they then?" Michelle asked demandingly.  
  
Chase was about to open his mouth but he was interrupted by a loud banging noise and a muffled scream. He immediately knew what it was and where it was coming from.  
  
"Chase? What is that noise?" Michelle asked looking straight at Chase. It couldn't be him, it just couldn't be him. "That's Kim's car, where is she? Chase?!"  
  
Kim lay on the trunk wondering what to do next when she heard the sound of a car engine approaching and then stopping. She heard talking outside the trunk and she tried to breath quieter to hear better, but she couldn't make out any words from the conversation. The other one was a man, was it Chase? But who was the other one? Maybe it was his accomplice or someone he was working for. For all she knew, it could be someone who could help her get out of the hell-hole she was locked in. She started banging on the top of the trunk and screaming as loud as she could. Did the people outside notice it? She didn't know, she couldn't hear, but she didn't stop making noise either. She'd been in worse situations before and gotten out alive, she was not going to die in the trunk of her own car, Kim kept on thinking. How long had she been banging and screaming? Seconds, minutes? She quietend suddenly when she heard a loud gun shot echoing in the parking hall. That was a sound that couldn't be mistaken. She waited holding her breath in the trunk. What had happened?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Author's Note: It took me ages to write this chapter and it ended up being a lot fluffier than I expected (bear with me now!).   
Anyways, I'm starting to wrap this story up, I can't keep Michelle and Tony apart any longer, can I?   
Well, obviously I can, cause this is my story, but I hope I'll have a decent ending to this story. So, a couple of more chapters to be expected. Reviews are always welcome!


	9. Weighing the Situation

Tony was going through the files at Bob Warner's office while Jack had pulled Kate outside the room and closed the door.  
  
"Kate, I just wanted to say how much I appreciate that you agreed to help us."  
  
"Did I have a choice, Jack?" Kate frowned. "If I had said 'no', then you would've just knocked my door with a warrant to search the company."  
  
Jack paused. Would he have done that? He probably wouldn't have even bothered to get a warrant. Kate knew him too well. "I'm sorry what happened between us..."  
  
"Don't be, there was no other way. You were too dedicated to serving the country and you still are. I just had to accept that and move on. And I have."  
  
Jack looked at Kate. He'd forgotten how beautiful yet strong and independent she was. He'd forgotten how much he had missed her. "Kate, I haven't."  
  
Kate sighed. "Well, you should, Jack. You shouldn't live in the past." She gave him one last glance before entering the office again.  
  
"You found what you were looking?"  
  
Tony was typing behind the computer screen. "Not yet. There are hundreds of files, it'll take hours to check them all!"  
  
"Warner International is not a small company, you know?" Kate said looking bored. She was dragged from her bed because of Jack, once again, and seeing him was more painful than she had anticipated no matter what she'd just said. She was ready to get back home.  
  
"Wait, Jack, have a look at this."  
  
Jack walked behind Tony and leaned to see what was on the screen. "What kind of deals you have with Colombia?" He asked looking at the file.  
  
"None, as far as I'm concerned. But this is a big company and my father does make some own decisions too." Kate walked to the screen. "That's odd, there should be records of what the cargo was... Let me try..."  
  
Tony made room for her and she opened a few files: "The log file hasn't been filled properly."  
  
"Is that common?" Jack asked suspiciously.  
  
"No, dad is usually very strict about them."  
  
"Are there more alike?"  
  
"Wait a minute."  
  
Kate searched the database for matching files: "There's 6 similar transports from Colombia during the past four months. The most recent transport was brought in just... yesterday. There's no record of it being transferred to anywhere else yet, so it's probably still at the airport's storage."  
  
"You have no idea what the cargo holds?" Jack asked looking at Kate who had leaned over to the computer.  
  
"No, it doesn't say. I can see to whom the shipment is addressed though."  
  
"You can do that?"  
  
"Yeah, everything that enters our airports must have a somebody's name on them. It's not like we let anything be shipped through us. We do check backgrounds and usually we keep very tight control over the cargo's content." Kate said looking tightly at the computer screen, she avoided any unnecessary eye contact with Jack, who was standing behind her. "Here.. It's a Chase Edmunds, he has also signed all the previous shipments."  
  
Jack's heart made an extra beat and he quickly leaned over Kate to see what was on the screen. "Chase Edmunds, that can't be right.."  
  
"Well, it says here so. Someone you know?"  
  
"A new guy from the office. You said the cargo is still on the field, can we see it?"  
  
Kate was about to mention something about their privacy policy, but instead, after seeing the worried expression on Jack's face, she just nodded.  
  
"You think Chase is working behind our backs?" Tony whispered to Jack while following Kate through the dark corridors to the Warner's airport.  
  
"For his sake, I hope not." Jack said seriously. He'd grown tired of finding moles and other unloyal workers inside CTU where he should be able to trust his life with almost everyone. And this one was also personal.  
  
Kim tried to listen what was going on in the parking hall, but everything had gone quiet. She shivered from fear and breathed rapidly. Suddenly she heard the key being turned in the lock and the door of the trunk slowly opened. Kim blinked her eyes and jerked her head away from the light until she'd get accustomed to the bright lights. She felt a hand grabbing her and pulling her from the trunk. She streched her legs which had been squeezed into a small space and took a look around to see what was going on. Chase, who had obviously helped her out of the trunk had taken a few steps away from her and was still holding his gun, aiming it at her, but having his eyes on somebody else. Kim turned to see what he was looking at, and at first, she couldn't believe what she saw.  
  
"Michelle?" She said quietly her eyes widened from amazement.  
  
"Kim?" Michelle raised her head. She had kneeled on the floor and looked probably as scared as Kim did. "Are you ok? I could use your help here!"  
  
Kim startled. She had been just standing there staring at Michelle and hadn't realized the whole situation. Michelle was leaning over somebody and had her hands covered on blood as she was trying to press the wound on Alex's stomach. Kim took a few steps towards her but stopped as Chase turned his head towards her and ordered her to stay put.  
  
"Chase, be reasonable, you can't just let him bleed to death!" Michelle yelled. Kim was surprised to hear that there was no hesitation and not a trace of fear in her voice. "I know you and this is not who you are at all! Whatever they're paying you, it's not worth killing an innocent!"  
  
"Whatever they are paying him", Kim thought. What had happened to him? Kim looked at Chase who was again looking at Michelle. His face didn't reveal how much he was agonizing over the situation. Michelle's words had struck him hard. He had indeed killed an innocent already. He had just put Chloe's death behind not thinking that he'd really killed one of his friends a few hours ago. Had he killed an innocent before? Not that he knew of. And now he'd shot another. He didn't like the person he was slowly turning to be.  
  
"I have a first aid kit in my car." Kim suggested in a barely hearable voice. She could help, she had taken some lessons after the shooting at the grocery store couple of years back. She could almost picture the dying owner lying on the ground while she tried to stop the bleeding, just like Michelle was doing right now.  
  
Chase was weighing the situation. It was only a matter of time until someone would come and find them in the garage. He could just lift the man he'd shot into the trunk and lock Kim and Michelle some where until he'd have time to deal with them. There was no chance he'd get wounded man carried to the office without someone noticing. And he had to play this cool for a moment longer.  
  
"Chase, please..." Kim begged.  
  
"Get the kit from the car, but don't try anything stupid!"  
  
Kim ran to get the first aid kit while Chase slammed the trunk closed. There was always another way. That he'd learned from Jack.  
  
"It's storage 2 over there..." Kate pointed at a big storage building with several numbered doors. Storage room no 2 was at the end of the lane. "The cargo you're looking for is marked as A-739. I'll go talk to the security guard and follow you guys afterwards, ok?"  
  
"Yeah, sure." Jack smiled. He turned to look at Kate while she was walking away but decided not to say anything right now. This was not the time nor the place.  
  
"So, let's find out what Chase's been up to.. Jack?" Tony turned around to look at Jack who was clearly tangled in his thoughts, still looking at the direction Kate was headed. "Jack, wake up!"  
  
"What...? Yeah, sure, let's go."  
  
Kim had managed to tie up Alex's wound the best she could but he wasn't looking too good.  
  
"He needs to get into the hospital, Chase!" She and Michelle were carrying Alex down the fire stairs. He was heavy, and although she knew that neither Michelle or herself were physically weak persons, they still had to struggle to get him down the stairs. Alex moaned in pain and Kim quickly noticed that Michelle wasn't in her best shape either. In fact she was amazed how well she could carry her side of the burden.  
  
"This will have to do." Chase stated and opened a door to a room, which by the look of it, seemed to be an old storage room. Kim and Michelle laid Alex down beside the wall.  
  
"For your own well being, don't do anything stupid." Chase said before closing and locking the door.  
  
The room was dark, there was only one small, thick window just below the ceiling. You could see the shade of grass outside, covering about a half from the window screen. They were below the surface then, Kim concluded. She looked at the man she had just carried from the parking hall.  
  
"What's his name?" She asked quietly.  
  
"Alex Peterson. He's one of my neighbors. He probably saved my life earlier." Michelle sighed.  
  
Kim looked at Michelle, who was paler than usually, yet she seemed strong and determined. She envied her for that.  
  
"What are we going to do now?" Kim asked trying to follow Michelle's example and not to despair.  
  
Michelle stood up: "We have to get out of here." 


	10. RPG7

"This is it, then?" Tony asked nodding towards a large wooden container. "Any idea what's in there?"  
  
Jack stopped to look at the container: "No, but we'll find out soon. Help me find something to open it."  
  
Tony started turning aroung in search for a tool or alike. "I swear to God I'll kill him if he's got anything to do with Michelle's death." He muttered to himself thinking about Chase.  
  
"Not if I get him first." Jack replied knowing right away who his friend was talking about. Tony looked at Jack and smiled. He didn't think he had heard him.  
  
"This will do." Jack found a crowbar from a toolbox in the corner and lifted it on the air and showed it to Tony.  
  
Michelle walked around the room searching for something she could use to get the door open. She kicked the door frustratedly once more knowing that it wouldn't open and no one would hear them. She felt stupid for getting out of the car in the first place. She should have known better. And when Kim started making noise and she realized where she was, maybe she could've done something more to prevent the situation from getting so bad. She could have stopped Alex for starters. Why did men have to play heroes?  
  
Kim sat on the floor next to Alex. He was breathing but was no longer conscious, although Kim had managed to get the bullet wound cleaned and tied quite nicely.  
  
"I still can't believe you're alive." Kim gasped. The room cast a deep shadow over her and the small window didn't provide much of a light.  
  
"Believe it or not." Michelle smiled. "I'm pretty much amazed myself. Our house is completely wrecked and had I been inside..."  
  
"I'm sorry about the house."  
  
"Don't be, it's just stuff. I couldn't stand the neighbors anyway." She tried to lighten up the situation and she managed to get a faint smile on Kim's face, which wiped away quickly as Michelle's voice got a more serious tone: "How's Tony? I reckon he didn't take it too well?"  
  
Kim let her eyes drop to the ground. "I didn't get a good chance to talk with him, but Jack did, though."  
  
Michelle was glad that Jack was there for Tony.  
  
"But he seemed.. pretty scattered basically. And it's totally understandable. He sounded so sad but also at the same time so angry."  
  
"I wish he doesn't do anything stupid. Do you know where he is?"  
  
"What do you mean?" Kim asked unaware that her father and Tony had left the building at the same time she found herself being attacked by her boyfriend.  
  
"Chase said they were out. What is he planning to do?"  
  
"With us?"  
  
"With the whole situation..."  
  
"I think it has something to do with the dead agents."  
  
"With what dead agents?" It was Michelle's turn to be puzzled.  
  
"You wouldn't know, would you?" Kim sighed going through the things Jack had told them earlier. "I don't know everything, because, well, Tony told us about you and we were all kinda upset.. But well, anyway... Dad told us about the missing satellite frames Tony and that new girl were working on earlier and that the team he'd sent to check the location was found shot and the warehouse had been cleaned in a hurry and then there was your house and then I was about to go get Chloe because she was the one who found the satellite images and that was when Chase, well, attacked me..." Kim took a deep breath, she had just let the words out and forgot to breath, that upset she was.  
  
"Oh my God, I didn't know that.." Taking a closer look at Kim, Michelle noticed her eye had swollen a bit from the fight with Chase – she'd have a black eye later. "You were going to get Chloe? I checked some files for her before I left."  
  
"So did dad say. He thought they were all connected: the warehouse, you, your house, Chloe and the files, everything. And now Chase. I just don't see how."  
  
Michelle was putting together the puzzle but there was still pieces missing. Suddenly she remembered something: "Do you know someone called Lilah here in the office?"  
  
Kim went through names and faces in her head. "Lilah? Does she work in domestics?"  
  
"I'm not sure but I think I've seen her in the coffee room perhaps. Dark, shoulder lenght hair, mid-thirties maybe, thin and about my height..." Michelle described.  
  
"Yeah! Now I remember her, she's a bit quiet, not much of a talker, isn't she? Why are you asking?"  
  
"She gave me a ride home and just minutes after she drove off the house blew up. I think that's just too big a coincidence."  
  
"You can't be sure, can you? I mean, you remember me telling you about how she dates Ryan Chappelle? And I don't think she would be a mole, if that's what you're saying?"  
  
There could have been someone other around their house too, now that Michelle came to think of it, but he would have probably spotted her when she walked out of the house. "She's dating Ryan? When did you tell me that?" Michelle realized what Kim had just said.  
  
"When I heard the girls from District gossiping about it some time ago. You were as amazed as I was, you even said that you didn't think anyone could ever be involved with him!" Kim laughed.  
  
Michelle smiled. "That sounds like me!"  
  
"But seriously." Kim lowered her voice. "You can't believe that he would be involved in this!"  
  
"I don't know what to believe!" Michelle sighed. "But he sure holds grudges against me and Tony."  
  
"But still, he wouldn't get this personal. He's the biggest nitpick I've ever met when it comes to rules!"  
  
Michelle smiled - Kim was right.  
  
Jack and Tony had struggled getting the cargo opened and finally, when the wooden door had opened, there'd been more wooden boxes, but smaller and they'd carried one outside. Jack was now opening the box. Tony was breathing nervously and he could see that Jack was as eager to open that box as he was. The wooden planks soon gave in to Jack's attempts and revealed its contents. Jack lifted a large weapon inside.  
  
"RPG-7, a grenade launcher." He gasped. "I saw these in Kosovo." He looked at Tony, who nodded at him. "It can be fired from over 400 metres from the target. They leave a big mess..."  
  
"Why not smuggle guns, why these?" Tony wondered looking inside the box and seeing more alike.  
  
"I bet they pay high prices from these in the Middle East. The other warehouse was probably where they kept them before selling them to terrorists." Jack muttered checking the gun and then carefully putting it back to the box.  
  
"Whoever Chase is working for, won't let these gather dust in here. I'll bet they're going to pick up the cargo some time soon." Tony said developing a plan in his head. He hadn't been in field for ages but that was like riding a bicycle, once you've learned it, you'll never forget it.  
  
"And we'll get them then." Jack continued.  
  
They looked at each other and a thought crossed their minds at the same moment and Jack grabbed his cell-phone. Chase was heading CTU as they were speaking!  
  
"Drop the phone, Jack!" A figure came out from the shadows followed by two other. Jack let his hand drop, when he noticed he was at gun point. Two guns, to be exact, was aimed at them. One was aimed at him and the other at Tony, who hadn't noticed the three men sneaking in either.  
  
Jack didn't need to see the face of the man, neither did Tony. They both recognized him by voice.  
  
"Surprised to see me?"  
  
"Not really, Ryan, I was just thinking that something smelled really bad here. Should've known it was you all along."  
  
Ryan Chappelle smirked. "A lot of talk considering the situation, Jack. Drop the phone to the ground and your guns too and kick them over here. NOW!"  
  
Jack and Tony did as they were told to do.  
  
"So what were you going to do with these? Sell them to terrorists and help them destroy innocent lives of women and children?" Jack tried to come up with an escape plan. They probably hadn't noticed Kate and if only she'd realized the situation before they would get her.  
  
"That's not your concern. I'm actually surprised that you found out this quickly and amazed that you didn't find out sooner."Ryan Chappelle kept on smirking nastily. "You'd probably be still sleeping completely unaware of everything if there hadn't been that idiotic partner of yours who has a tendency of screwing things up, but I'm amazed that, once again, you couldn't spot a mole even if it was shagging with your own daughter under your nose!" He laughed at his last comment which he thought had successfully hit a nerve. And it had. Jack was disgusted by Chappelle and he had to control himself so he wouldn't jump at his throat and choke him to death.  
  
"You son of a bitch!" Jack hissed through his teeth. "I always knew you were a sleazy bastard! Didn't make enough profit working for the Government like the rest of us, uh?"  
  
"Everyone has their price, Jack. Even your precious golden boy Chase did!"  
  
"And it's worth it?! Worth killing two good agents...?" Jack shouted hoping to spend enough time for Kate to arrive. If she hadn't get caught yet. Jack was sure that they hadn't noticed her yet though, if they had Chappelle would have been first to tell him. He wished he could wipe that smile off his face.  
  
"Worth killing my wife?!" Tony opened his mouth.  
  
"There are always unexpected losses in war. Think of her as a casualty. Besides, as much as the thought of you losing someone you love, after you two humiliated me in front of everybody and nearly put me into coma and made me the most unpopular person in the whole country just after the terrorists, thrilled me, I honestly did not intend to kill her. You can blame Chase for that. If that ugly computer analyst hadn't found the files he left on the computer and brought them to Michelle, you and your wife would be enjoying your morning porridge right about now!"  
  
Jack felt guilty for having Michelle check the files Chloe had brought to him. "Ryan, she didn't even find anything...!"  
  
"I had to be sure. You can also think that.. What was her name, again? Chloe? ...As a casualty too. And your stupid Kimberly as well!"  
  
"If you lay your hands on my daughter..." Jack started emphasizing every word.  
  
"Don't have to. My side-kick will do the dirty work for me! But enough of the chat already, I have a buyer to meet."  
  
Ryan Chappelle was about to leave, but turned around once more: "And, don't worry. Jack, you'll meet your daughter soon and Tony will be reunited with his wife."  
  
He turned to address the men holding the guns: "Shoot 'em and dump the bodies so they won't be found in a few days. I don't see who could be left to miss them but atleast I'll get out of the country safely!"  
  
Jack wished he'd had an extra grenade to blow Ryan Chappelle to the orbit of Pluto as he watched him to leave. 


	11. Last Words

Kate walked to the small office where the airport's security guard was stationed. She had tried to look for him from the airfield where he was usually patroling, but then decided to walk to check if he was watching at the monitors from his station.  
  
"Knock knock?" Kate notified her arrival as she opened the door and popped her head into the small room. The room was filled with small tv-screens monitoring the whole area. She wasn't sure who was on duty tonight, not that she would have remembered their names, she hadn't had much time to interact with the company's employees, she'd been working more and more lately. She refused to think it was because of Jack but she had to admit that her social life had been, frankly, dead, after Jack and she'd filled the void with work. But her father needed help too, she explained to herself. He'd been awfully down and depressed after what had happened with Marie and, although Kate knew there'd been only little they could've done, she couldn't help the guilt she sometimes felt. She had lost enough family members already and was clinging on to her father, although she knew he was getting older and she could see that.  
  
"Anyone here?" She tried but there was no response. She left the room and closed the door behind her. The sun was rising and the airport was quiet, there were still hours to the first employees to arrive. It was still a bit chilly after the night. Kate was wearing a knee-lenght skirt, a white silky blouse and high heels and she found herself shivering a bit. She wished she had taken her coat with her. To be honest, she didn't know why she'd made such a big deal out of dressing nicely. She refused to think it was because of Jack. Why did she let Jack to have such an impact over her life although she had worked so hard to get over him.  
  
"I won't let men to define who I am." She thought furiously to herself, but then a sudden laughter surprised her. "No wonder why I'm still single and my love life is a big mess... Well, that is if there was one!" Kate was about to start walking back to where Jack and Tony were but as she turned, a shadow caught her attention. She stopped and took a few steps back.  
  
"Oh my God!" She gasped as she saw the security guard lying on the ground behind a corner. She rushed to him and kneeled down to help, but as her hands got covered with blood she realized the guard hadn't fainted or anything, but he had been shot. She checked his pulse just to confirm what she already feared. Why was it always like this with Jack? She'd thought she'd left all this behind when she walked away from him. She took a deep breath while taking the guard's gun. She knew how to shoot, she had even killed someone. It was on the day she first met Jack. Should've known by that where a life with him would lead.  
  
"How long are we going to keep them there?" Chase nodded towards the holding room at an upper level. The window allowed him to watch whatever was going on inside the room without being seen by the people inside. There were 7 people, staff members, some of them Chase knew by name. They had taken them by surprise and locked inside the room. They were sitting on the floor, most of them looking scared. One woman was crying but no one was comforting her.  
  
He and Lilah had managed to send the rest of the staff home out of the way before they continued with the plan they'd come up with, but decided to keep a few to ensure their safe escape if anything went wrong. They had closed down the whole building. No incoming calls, messages, nothing. No one was to leave the building, no one to enter it. It's for our protection, Lilah had convinced him.  
  
"As long as it's necessary." Lilah answered. She enjoyed being in command and telling Chase what to do. "If everything goes the way Ryan has planned, the helicopter should be here to pick us up if and when the sale is over these people can walk out unharmed. We're not cruel." The last part she added partly to comfort Chase and partly to make him more nervous. She was aware what he had done during the night and knowing what a boy scout Chase basically was, she liked to see him sweat a bit.  
  
"Should we bring Michelle and Kim there too?" Chase continued asking questions. He felt it so much easier when someone else was making these decision for him. Even if that someone was Lilah, although he felt very uneasy around her.  
  
"No, they might just put wrong ideas into the minds of these poor computer geeks." She laughed. She sounded like a wicked witch from Disney's animations, Chase couldn't help noticing.  
  
"Besides, I have no idea how that stupid, but I must admit, unbelievably lucky bitch got out of the house alive, but I'm used to finishing what I've started."  
  
Chase didn't reply to Lilah's last comment. As he was watching his not-so- lucky fellow workers locked in the room, he couldn't help feeling sorry for them. And he couldn't help thinking about the choice he'd made. He hadn't known it would affect so many lives...  
  
"Guys! You're not seriously taking orders from a guy like Chappelle?" Jack tried to make a conversation and postpone the end that Chappelle had planned for them. And he was also trying to buy some time.  
  
The phone and the guns were lying in the corner where they'd kicked them. He could reach them with a dive but he probably would get shot if he even blinked his eyes.  
  
"You know you'll sit in jail for the rest of your lifes waiting to be executed?" Tony continued. He saw where Jack was heading.  
  
"You like to keep your distance, right? Did your mothers warn you not to talk to strangers?" Jack tried.  
  
The other man holding the gun laughed. "Didn't your mother ever told you not to stick your nose into other people's business?"  
  
He was talking with a strong accent and Jack guessed he was from Eastern Europe perhaps.  
  
"No, but atleast we're communicating now!"  
  
"Not for long." The man laughed.  
  
Jack saw a shadow approaching the door and caught a glimpse of Kate trying to hide around a corner. He wasn't sure if Tony had spotted her. She lift the gun she'd taken from the guard and aimed. Her hands were shaking. Jack hoped that the men wouldn't turn around.  
  
"Hey guys, I was just wondering. What is it with bad guys and big guns. Maybe you could explain that to me..:" Jack started trying to distract them enough so Kate could pull herself together. "I mean, are you just trying to compensate something with the size of your guns, get it?"  
  
"Shut up!" The man shouted annoyed. "Look, mr. Bauer. No more talk! You can consider those were your last words."  
  
He had no time to pull the trigger when Kate shot him in the back. At first she looked scared but then she looked terrified as the other man turned to aim at her. It all happened in just seconds. Jack dived after his gun, grabbed it and shot. And then he shot again, and again and again until the man dropped to the ground and didn't move anymore.  
  
Kate had also dropped to the ground. She was covering her head with her hands. Jack rushed over to her. He kneeled next to him and put his arms around her.  
  
"Kate, are you ok?" He whispered. "I'm so sorry."  
  
Alex coughed and Kim immediately turned him gently to his other side so he wouldn't choke on the blood he had been coughing for some time now.  
  
"We have to get him to the hospital, Michelle!"  
  
"I know." Michelle sighed. She was sitting next to Alex and holding his hand. She had no idea what to do. She had already tried kicking the door, banging the door, shouting through the door and none of it was working. And she was tired. Whatever adrenalin rush had kept her up and going since the blast, especially carrying Alex to the basement, was now gone. Her head was hurting. The numbness she'd felt in her fingers was there again and the bandage on her arm was getting wet from blood. She felt like just closing her eyes and wishing that when she opened them, all this would be gone. 


	12. Expectations

Kate was wiping her tears while sitting on the ground. Jack reached his hand to help her up.  
  
Tony was watching them from a distance. He wasn't sure if he should interrupt their moment so he decided to give them a second before he'd cut in.  
  
"Jack?" He said carefully.  
  
Jack jerked his head towards him. "What?"  
  
"There's a truck parked in the back. I'm guessing someone's gonna miss his cargo soon." He pointed at the bodies lying on the ground shot and bloody.  
  
"I see where you're going..." Jack nodded worrying about Kate. "I'll contact CTU, inform about... All this and Ryan, they can send a team here and we can ambush him when he gets back and send him to prison for the rest of his sorry life." He walked to pick up his cell phone which was still lying where he'd kicked it earlier.  
  
"Jack?!" Tony asked louder.  
  
"Yeah? What?!" Jack snapped.  
  
"You left Chase in charge, didn't you? Is it wise to call CTU?"  
  
"Shit.." Jack realized. How could have he forgotten? It has just slipped his mind. But then again, something else had slipped his mind too. What was had Ryan said again? It was about Kim.  
  
Jack dialed his daughter's number. "Answer, for god's sake!" He waited and hung up and tried to reach Kim's work phone. Finally he put the phone away. "Kim's not answering. She's not answering her cell and I can't get through to CTU!"  
  
"I'm sorry." Tony tried knowing what Ryan Chappelle had said about Kim. That she was a casualty, just like Chloe and Michelle. Tony didn't feel much sympathy for Chloe, but he was sorry for Kim because of Jack.  
  
"There's nothing to be sorry for. She's probably stuck in traffic somewhere after picking up Chloe." He convinced himself but not believing a word he was saying. He sighed. "I won't believe it until I see it."  
  
Tony nodded. "Ok. Call LAPD then?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Both Michelle and Kim were sitting on the floor. They had been quiet for a while, both trying to find a way out but both unable to come up with a plan or alike. The lock clicked and the door opened slowly. Chase walked in.  
  
"Kim, you come with me." He stated holding the gun and pointing it to Kim gesturing her to stand up.  
  
"What, why?" Her voice was shivering a bit. She was nervous and afraid.  
  
"Chase, be reasonable. What are you hoping to accomplish with this?" Michelle shouted but then lowered her voice. "Alex needs a doctor, if he doesn't make it, I'll hold you responsible and make you tell his kids what happened to their daddy!"  
  
Chase looked at Alex but he didn't respond to what Michelle had just said.  
  
"Kim, I won't ask you again." He said looking straigt at her eyes and ignoring Michelle. He couldn't help feeling guilty, but that was just what he was – guilty.  
  
Kim stood up reluctantly. She gave Michelle a pleading look as if to beg her to stop Chase and make things better again. Michelle watched her walk out the room. There was nothing she could do to help her.  
  
Kim walked up the stairs Chase following her. She didn't dare to say a word and she didn't have a clue where she was going. They walked to the upper level where Kim's workstation alongside with Chloe's was. The office was empty and dark and it made the place look even more eerie than it usually was.  
  
"I want you to delete whatever security footage there is from the past 12 hours from the system." Chase nodded at Kim's computer.  
  
"You know how to do that yourself." Kim pointed out.  
  
"Obviously not good enough." He smirked bitterly. "And I want you to do it." He added.  
  
Kim sat at her desk. "Why?"  
  
"It's your job, you know all this computer stuff better than I do."  
  
"No, I mean..." Kim turned her head so she could see Chase face to face. "Why all this? What happened to you?"  
  
Chase wanted to turn his head away but forced himself to look at Kim. There was a long silence between them until he spoke: "You deserve to know, don't you?"  
  
"Yes, I think I do." Kim said in a firm voice. Chase had lowered his gun and he wasn't pointing at Kim anymore. The atmosphere was far less tence than it had been just moments ago.  
  
"Partly because of the money. There's rent to pay and Angela is growing up..."  
  
"It cannot be just because of the money, Chase? Think what we had, think what you threw away!"  
  
Chase was trying to put his feelings into words. "Don't tell me what we had! I know! Damn, Kim... If you just, once in your life, tried to put yourself into someone else's shoes, maybe, in some level you'd understand.."  
  
Kim couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Put myself into your shoes!? So I'd understand, what's there to understand? They'll charge you for treason for god's sake! A treason is not very understandable!"  
  
"That's not what I mean!" Chase took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. "Kim... Why do you work in CTU?"  
  
"What? Because I want to serve my country..."  
  
"No, I mean, why did they pick you for your job. There were several other more competent and experienced people applying for your position. Why you?"  
  
Kim didn't answer, although she knew where Chase was headed.  
  
"Because of Jack and you know it." Chase answered to the question. "Tell me, have you ever really worked in your life? And I don't mean babysitting or anything like that, I mean, really worked? Risked your life every single day and get nothing in return? Tried to meet the expectations of others, of Jack, every day?"  
  
"You can't be seriously saying this is my dad's fault. And who are you to talk about expectations? I'm his daughter they expect me to..."  
  
"...Sit behind your desk and smile pretty. You're his daughter, you could probably do anything and no one would even try to come against you." Chase finished Kim's sentence.  
  
"That's not true." Kim managed to say.  
  
"You know what bugs me? I can never be what Jack wants me to be, and I can never be as good as he is."  
  
Kim sat quietly. She'd never heard Chase to open up like that. She had no idea what had been going on in his mind.  
  
"And I don't think that you even notice it yourself, but I can't be the guy you're looking for, Kim. You want me to be so different from your father but at the same time, you expect to find the best of him in me." he continued.  
  
Chase looked heart broken and beaten. Moved by what he had just said, Kim stood up and without thinking much further she wrapped her arms aroung him and hugged tightly. And Chase hugged her back.  
  
Ryan Chappelle stood nervously next to his car. The buyer was waiting but the men he had left to deal with Jack Bauer and Tony Almeida had not returned with the cargo yet. Things couldn't have gone wrong, he kept saying. Jack Bauer couldn't have gotten away this time. No, this was his time to get even with Jack Bauer. Although killing him was not the plan, but he didn't mind the way the plan was working. Where he was concerned Jack should have been put to prison for treason alongside with his friend Tony for attempted murder a very long time ago. But obviously being friends with the president helped a great deal. I voted for the other guy, he snarled. 


	13. Always Another Way

Author's Note: So sorry for not updating the story for awhile, but here you go :)   
Your reviews are still very much appreciated!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The deal is off!" Ryan shouted on his cell phone. He was sitting in his car and driving through LA. Luckily it wasn't the time for the morning rush hour yet.  
  
"What do you mean off? What's going on?" Lilah stopped at the glass window of the holding room where they kept the hostages.  
  
"I should've killed Jack Bauer myself, but never mind. A change of plans, just make sure you're on the top of the building in an hour or so. I'll pick you up with the chopper."  
  
"That's a lot of money you're throwing away Ryan! Our money!" Lilah shouted on the phone.  
  
"There's not much to do, honey! The police has the guns now and I wouldn't want to see your pretty face behind bars." Ryan said conciliatingly.  
  
"Ok, then. Just letting you know." Lilah took a look on the people inside the room. "What about the people we're holding here?"  
  
"Leave 'em, kill 'em, just don't let them interfere." Ryan stated in a cold voice.  
  
"And Chase, I'll get rid of him too?"  
  
"We'll proceed just as we planned with him."  
  
"I understand. Oh, and Jack Bauer's daughter and that Michelle Dessler have somehow managed not to get themselves killed, but I'll see that that changes soon."  
  
"Son of a... Yeah, take care of them soon. I don't want anything, and I mean a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g messing this thing up, Ok?"  
  
Lilah closed her cell and took a last look at the people in the room. They were leaning on the walls unknowing what was going to happen.  
  
"I'll drop you off at your father's. Is that ok, Kate?" Jack addressed his words to the woman sitting in the backseat.  
  
"No." Kate shook her head.  
  
Jack turned his head from the driver's seat to see her. "I don't think you should be alone right now."  
  
"I'm coming with you." Kate wasn't sure why she had to argue. She knew she'd be safer at home or at her father's place, but she didn't want to let go of Jack. She felt that if she didn't hold on to him, he would disappear again, and at the moment, she needed him to be there with her. She didn't want him to disappear.  
  
Jack focused his eyes on the road. He wanted to protect her, keep her safe, why couldn't she just for once do as she is told. He sighed.  
  
"Ok, you can come with us, but you have to stay in the car. Understood?"  
  
Kate smiled but didn't reply.  
  
Chase walked the stairs back. He had just escorted Kim back to the basement. He kept replaying the moment he and Kim had shared few minutes earlier. He'd held her in his arms and regretted everything he'd done.  
  
"Chase! Come here!" Lilah called him.  
  
Chase turned around and walked up the stairs to where Lilah was standing. He felt sicker and sicker with every step he took.  
  
"I just got a call from Chappelle. The last deal is canceled, he'll be picking us up in an hour with a chopper."  
  
Chase nodded without even thinking what could have gone wrong with the deal. "Fine."  
  
"You don't seem that disappointed. You do understand that mean less money for you?" Lilah smirked knowing that she was getting on Chase's nerves. "Don't tell me, money doesn't matter to you anymore, you've decided to switch sides, again?" Her laughter echoed in the empty corridors.  
  
"Shut up, ok?" Chase growled.  
  
Lilah kept on smirking victoriously. "Thinking of getting back with your girlfriend, start a big happy family and..."  
  
"I said SHUT UP!" He was getting truly agitated.  
  
"...raise two kids and spend the money you've earned with such a hard work. You know, betraying the country and all, it's like a full time job for you, isn't it?"  
  
Lilah had no time to react as Chase pushed her to the wall. After a surprised second she got in charge of the situation again. "Getting a bit emotional here, aren't we?"  
  
Chase took a deep breath and finally let go of Lilah. He turned around if as to leave, but stopped when he heard a safety catch of a gun clicking and turned around. Lilah was holding her gun and pointing it towards Chase.  
  
"You honestly thought I was going to let you risk this whole thing? That Ryan and I were simply going to let you ruin what we had started and collect your share of the money? Our money?" She laughed to emphasize Chase's stupidity. "I knew from the very beginning that you wouldn't have what it takes to pull this thing through. I bet you were going to beg me to spare your future-wife-to-be from the miserable death that we have planned for her. But I'll tell you this, kid. It ain't gonna happen. After I've finished you, I'm going over to your girlfriend's..."  
  
That was enough for Chase. It took no more than a split second to knock Lilah to the floor. She didn't have even time to finish her sentence and Chase totally caught her off guard. He leaned over her to take her gun and then dragged her unconscious body to the nearest room and locked the door behind him.  
  
"He was conscious for a couple of minutes there, but he's getting weaker." Michelle said to Kim, who had been returned to the room unharmed. Kim nodded.  
  
"I was so scared he was gonna hurt you." She continued.  
  
"I don't think he would have... I mean, earlier, I honestly thought I was going to die in that trunk, but I don't think that anymore." Kim sighed. "It's like, a part of me even feels guilty for what has happened."  
  
"Guilty? You shouldn't feel guilty for anything. He is the only one who is responsible for choices he made. There's always another way."  
  
"Yeah, but I had no idea how he was feeling. I don't understand why I didn't notice it earlier."  
  
"Kim, listen to me, there is always another way. He could've back out anytime, he could've said no anytime. But he didn't. It is not your fault."  
  
Kim tried to hold back the tears and smiled. "I guess you're right..."


	14. Final Plans

Author's Note: Thanks for kicking my butt, Chase's-Gurl. I thought no one would notice if I slacked for awhile here, but glad to see I was wrong. To make excuses for myself, I've been packing my belongings into card-board boxes as I'm (finally) moving away to begin my studies and it took me hours to find the computer from the chaos I currently live in ;) And I've also tried to postpone writing these last chapters as I've counted there won't be that many left to write.. sob (I just can't let go, with the 24 on summer hiatus and all!!).. But here you are, I try to get a grip and write the remaining ones as soon as possible!  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chase rushed the stairs down to the basement-level. He tripped while running and almost fell but got his balance back before rolling down the stairs. Lilah's gun, which he had been holding perhaps too carelessly, flew through the air and landed on the ground making a hollow sound that echoed in the stairway. Chase stopped to breath. He had to get a grip. He tried to hold his hands steadily before him, but couldn't stop them from shaking. He slowed down and reached to get the gun.  
  
"You can do it, you can do it." Chase repeated to himself. He walked to the door which led to the room where they held Kim, Michelle and the other guy. What was his name again, he couldn't remember although he wanted to.  
  
They had been quiet for awhile. Kim held Alex's hand in hers. She didn't even know the guy, hardly even spoken to him, but there she was, holding his hand feeling much safer with him than with her boyfriend. The situation was absurd, it almost made her laugh. Although her conversation with Chase had perhaps made her understand a bit more why he did what he did. It was the story of her life: with a father-daughter relationship like hers, who would ever expect her to find a trustworthy guy who she could some day marry?  
  
The lock clicked and the door opened. Michelle lifter her head to face what was coming. She saw Chase entering the room with a gun. Her heart almost stopped beating – this was it, then? This is why she had survived the blast, almost gotten Alex killed, just to be shot to death by a kid younger than she was, suffering from a low self-esteem. She would never see Tony again, she couldn't apologize for the way she'd behaved earlier, she was always nagging about nothing though she knew it wasn't easy for Tony either. They could never have kids, he would never cook her dinner and she would never again hold him in her arms. She didn't want to die, there was too much she hadn't said or done.  
  
"Come on, we have to leave, now!" Chase whispered checking his back, just in case.  
  
"What, leave?" Kim stuttered. Michelle was puzzled too. If he was going to do it anyway, why not do it here?  
  
"I know this doesn't count for much but I'm sorry. Kim, I'm sorry, I don't know what I was doing." He addressed his last words to Kim and continued: "Michelle, I... I just didn't know. I didn't know what they were up to! I swear!"  
  
"Yeah.. You didn't know, that makes a big difference.." Michelle mumbled bitterly. She wasn't really convinced on Chase's sudden burst of guilt.  
  
"Whatever I say won't change the situation, but I need your help." Chase pleaded. "We... I have to try to do something, I can't let things to run like this anymore. I won't let them kill you."  
  
"Who, Ryan?" Michelle asked trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together.  
  
"No, yeah.. Him too, I guess, but mainly Lilah. She had it all under control. Chappelle has a chopper coming, he'll pick her up in an hour..."  
  
"So they didn't include you in their final plans after all, did they?" Michelle asked putting two and two together. "They ditched you and you decide to change sides again, how convenient."  
  
"Is that what happened?" Kim opened her mouth. "You didn't come here for us, you're doing this for you?"  
  
"No!" Chase answered. Why had he thought they'd be glad that he'd be letting them go? "I'm doing this for us all, please, help me stop them. Help me contact Jack and stop this. Hell, I'm risking my life here too! If I make it alive I know I'll be spending the rest of my sorry life in jail for this!" He lowered his voice and tried to lighten up the situation: "If Jack doesn't kill me first."  
  
Kim forced a smile: "I'll bet he will."  
  
"You'll help me?"  
  
Kim looked at Michelle. Michelle went through the alternatives in her head - there weren't many.  
  
"We have to get Alex to the hospital!" She demanded.  
  
Chase nodded. "I know, and we will. I have Lilah locked in a room, this is her gun, I took it."  
  
Michelle struggled to get up. "What do you suggest we do?"  
  
"First we tie her up, then we get Jack. Then we get Chappelle."  
  
Kim was still holding Alex's hand. Michelle didn't know what was going on in her mind, she didn't even dare to guess, but she knew what was going on in her own mind. "Sounds like a plan to me."  
  
The gate to the garage was closed and the office, where the security guard would sit, was empty. Jack got out from the car and walked to the gate. He tried to enter his security code to get the gate to open, but with no luck.  
  
"Shit!" He yelled and kicked the gate.  
  
"Let me try." Tony opened the car door and walked to Jack.  
  
"It was to be expected, wasn't it?" He stated when he had tried to enter his own code twice.  
  
"I know, I'm just so frustrated and pissed knowing that my baby girl might be in there..." He hit the wall with his fist.  
  
"Take it easy, you're not helping anyone!" Tony shouted trying to calm him down. Kate stepped out of the car as well.  
  
"How are we going to get in?"  
  
"Not we, Kate, just me and Tony." Jack turned to Kate. "You are going to wait in the car."  
  
Kate looked at Jack her face completely expressionless. "We can start arguing about this and lose time, if you want."  
  
Jack sighed, how could one woman turn his world upside down like this. He certainly was not the person to take orders from others, but from her... He knew he would end up losing the battle with Kate. He might have the strenght but she had something that he couldn't handle. She had something in common with Teri there, Jack thought for a second, but wiped the thought out of his head. He would not start comparing and living in the past now.  
  
Chase led Kim and Michelle through the corridor.  
  
"Here, I left her in here." He pointed.  
  
He turned to face Michelle. "Here, you take this." Chase handed her his gun. He was holding Lilah's. Michelle was surprised. Was Chase really that serious, she thought. This might be their way out of the building.  
  
"Just in case, you know." Chase added.  
  
Michelle was tempted to point the gun at Chase and just grab Kim and run. But she didn't. She decided to stand behind him.  
  
Chase opened the door and took a few cautios steps in. Michelle followed and reached to see the room. It was empty.


	15. Dropping Guns

"This is where you left her?" Michelle asked  
  
Chase nodded. "She must have gotten out somehow."  
  
"Well... Obviously." Michelle took her gun suddenly and pointed it to Chase's head. "If this is one of your silly little plans, say it now and I will kill you fast and you'll escape the wrath of my husband and Kim's father."  
  
"No, I'm telling the truth! This is where I left her! You have to believe me!"  
  
Michelle kept her gun pointing at Chase. She wasn't sure what to do. If this was Chase trying to pull something off here, she wasn't buying. She could tie him up and find Lilah before Chappelle would arrive, then call the police and Tony and solve everything. It sounded really desperate plan even to herself. Kim acted like a spooked little rabbit and considering the state she herself was in, she guessed they wouldn't make it.  
  
Kim placed her hand onto Michelle's arm. "I believe him, Michelle."  
  
Michelle was a bit surprised but, after trying to observe the expression on Chase's face and not finding a sign of deceit, she let the gun drop. "Fine. "  
  
Kim looked nervously behind her shoulders. "Do you think Ryan might have picked her up already?" She was not too comfortable knowing that the horrible woman might be somewhere in the same building with her.  
  
"No, we would have heard him arrive, and besides, Lilah said that he would pick her in an hour. It hasn't been an hour yet, has it?" Chase answered. Michelle agreed nodding her head, she had also figured out that much.  
  
The corridors were silent and the whole CTU building was dark and empty.  
  
Kim was moving restlessly. "So she's here somewhere then. I say we run and call my dad outside."  
  
"I say we try to find her before she and Chappelle escape." Chase suggested.  
  
"I agree. They have to pay for what they've done." Michelle muttered quietly.  
  
"Now stand back!" Jack shouted. He had pulled electric wires from the car to the metallic device controlling the gate to the garage. It made a short and sharp bang, the screen went blank and Jack could smell the smoke. He took a step away from the gate and kicked it as hard as he could. It opened creaking. "C'mon now, let's go!"  
  
Kate entered the garage right behind Tony. Jack had no other choice but to watch her join them. He wasn't too happy risking her as he didn't know what was waiting for them inside, but in a weird way, he was glad she was there with him.  
  
"The gate is separated from the main security system, we still have to get through it." Tony pointed out as they arrived to the door leading to CTU.  
  
"I know. I suggest we override the system from the control panel with a little help from our friend electricity." Jack smirked back at Tony.  
  
He laughed, for the first time during the horrible night, Jack noticed. "Let's rock 'n roll then!"  
  
Michelle watched the holding room in horror and backed few steps. She tried to push Kim away so she wouldn't see what she had just witnessed.  
  
"What?" Kim asked curiously wanting to know why she was being pushed away.  
  
"Kim, don't, you don't wanna see this." Chase tried to stop her but Kim shook his hand away. She walked into the room and almost threw up. They were supposed to let the people go, the people Chase and Lilah had locked inside a holding room. It looked as if they were sleeping - clear, clean shots to the head, only a little blood dripping to the floor. They were her co-workers, some she even regarded as friends. She couldn't hold back the tears, Chase turned her around and pulled away from the room. Michelle watched him hold her tightly. She was partly disgusted by the sight, she couldn't understand how Kim could forgive him so easily. The way she was concerned, Chase had betrayed them, he had lied to Tony and Jack, shot Alex and hurt Kim both physically and emotionally. She hold him responsible for what had happened to the people inside the room.  
  
"I wonder where she might be?" Michelle broke the silence.  
  
"She might be waiting Chappelle on the roof?" Chase suggested.  
  
"She could. Maybe if..." Michelle almost couldn't believe what she was going to suggest next, but she acknowledged it would be the most efficient way to handle things. "Maybe if you two go check the roof and I'll stay down here and try to see if there's a sign of her on the security footage."  
  
"I don't think splitting up is the best idea!" Kim wiped her tears. "Why don't we all go and check the footage together?"  
  
"Michelle is right, Kim. We'd we spending too much time on that, what if the chopper arrives while we're going through the tapes? It's best if we split."  
  
Chase turned to notice he was again facing Michelle's gun.  
  
"We'll split, but first you will give your gun to Kim." She demanded.  
  
Chase took a short glimpse of Kim who was still shaking. He gave Michelle a look to indicate his concern about Kim's state.  
  
"I don't trust you." Michelle simply stated. And she didn't. Chase nodded and handed the gun to Kim who took it without questioning.  
  
The panel made a huge crackle and the lights of the garage went off. Jack nodded to the dark hall: "Guess we got more than we bargained for!"  
  
"The cameras are not moving." Tony noticed. "I think it worked. Try the door, Jack."  
  
Jack walked to the door and put his hand on the handle and pulled carefully. The door opened slowly. He gave a victorious smile to Tony and Kate before pulling his gun. Tony followed his example and got his gun too. Jack thought for a second what he should do with Kate, but gave her his extra-gun. "You don't have to use it."  
  
"I know."  
  
"But I feel much safer when you have it." Jack smiled.  
  
"I know." Kate smiled back at him.  
  
"Do we have a plan then?" Tony asked before entering CTU.  
  
"Yeah.." Jack muttered.  
  
"Might wanna tell us too?"  
  
"For all we know, Ryan and Chase might roll this plan on their own, but as for I'm concerned, I don't think that's the whole truth."  
  
"I see where you're going." Tony sounded serious. "So trust no one."  
  
"As always." Jack frowned. "You two take the fire-exit to the office-level, I go check for that chopper."  
  
Tony nodded. Jack looked at Kate, who nodded aswell. "Be careful, Jack." She said.  
  
Michelle walked to the security room where all the monitors and security tapes where at. She couldn't believe she'd just left Kim alone with Chase. She noticed her vision getting a bit blurred, but she shook the thought of not handling things on her own out of her mind. "I don't have time for this." She hissed to herself angrily. She reached over to monitors which were blank to switch them on, but whatever she tried to do, they remained blank.  
  
"Shit!" She swore. "Just what I needed."  
  
Michelle left the security room and was about to head towards the roof but stopped as an idea hit her. What would have Lilah done after killing those people? She turned on her heels and headed to the fire-exit. She was probably making sure that there were no people left telling about her involvement to anyone and Michelle prayed for Alex as she ran to the stairway.  
  
Tony and Kate walked the stairs up not making a sound. Kate tried to breath as quiet as she could. Suddenly Tony turned towards her and lifted a finger on his lips and gestured her to be silent. She stopped moving and automatically tried to hold her breath. Tony leaned on the wall and Kate followed his example. He had his gun ready.  
  
Michelle stopped before a corner. She had definitely heard something, or was it just her imagination playing tricks on her. She wiped sweat from her face and held her gun more tightly. She wasn't left-handed but hoped she'd looked believable trying to hold the gun steadily in her left hand. Her right arm, which was bleeding again she noticed, was hanging loosely on the side. It hurt and she couldn't feel much anything with it.  
  
She walked silently a few steps until she reached the corner. It was now or never. She took a leap round the corner, lifted her gun and was ready to shoot. She found herself standing face to face with a gun barrel, but it wasn't hers. Behind the other gun she found a familiar face.  
  
"Tony?" She sobbed letting the gun drop to the ground. 


	16. Surprises

Tony let his hand drop.For a second he thought he had met a ghost. For another second he tried to find words but he had none. He just reached out to Michelle and grabbed her into a tight hug and buried his face into her hair.  
  
"Baby, I'm so sorry for everything. I thought I lost you."  
  
Michelle let her tears run. She could feel Tony's heart beating strongly against her chest. "I know, I tried to call you." She whispered. "I'm so sorry for getting mad at you, I just want us to be together."  
  
Tony broke apart from the embrace and examined his wife's face. It hadn't been no more than a mere night that they'd been away from each other and yet, it felt like he was seeing her for the first time. She might have been bruised, bloody and sweaty, her hair was a mess and eyes swollen from exhaustion and tears, but to him, she looked stronger and more beautiful than ever.  
  
"What?" Michelle smiled at Tony's stare. He tucked a curl behind her ear.  
  
"I love you." Michelle leaned towards him and softly pressed her lips to his."I love you too."  
  
There was no one on the roof. Chase and Kim had walked through it a couple of times at the same time gazing at the sky in search of a chopper.  
  
"She's not here." Kim said looking around.  
  
"No, and I don't see Chappelle here either. Come on, let's go see if Michelle has found anything."  
  
They started walking towards the door which led to the stairway and to an elevator. Before they could reach it, it slammed open and Chase was standing face to face with Jack. His heart skipped a beat.  
  
"You son of a bitch!" Jack yelled furiously and drew his gun at Chase. "Kim, are you ok?"  
  
Chase swallowed nervously. He didn't even have a gun to protect himself. Not that he would have wanted to protect himself, he was more than sure that he deserved everything that was coming.  
  
Kim had taken a few steps away from Chase. She nodded to Jack. "Yeah, dad, don't worry I'm fine."  
  
"Good, now go inside, sweetheart, you don't need to see this."  
  
"No." She replied after a short pause.  
  
"What do you mean 'no', just go inside, Chase and I will have a little chat."  
  
"He doesn't deserve to die, dad. Don't do anything stupid."  
  
Chase couldn't believe what he was hearing, Kim was, in fact, trying to defend him. Actually, it made him feel even more horrible person if it was even possible anymore. After all what he'd done to her, she was willing to stand by him.  
  
"I'm not gonna kill him, I just want to talk to him." Jack tried to keep his voice calm to convince Kim. Whatever he was about to do next, he didn't want Kim to be around.  
  
"Kim, do as he says. It's ok." Chase cut in. Whatever he was about to face, he didn't want Kim to have to witness it.  
  
She looked at him and nodded and walked to the door. Jack watched her open the door and walk in. He sighed from relief.  
  
"Now it's just you and me. "  
  
"Jack, I know what I did is unforgivable, but hear me out now. Chappelle is coming any minute and we need to stop him from leaving the country."  
  
"We?"  
  
"I think you need all the help you can get."  
  
Jack weighed the situation. He took a step closer and punched Chase as hard as he could. Chase fell to the ground holding his face.  
  
"I don't need your help!"  
  
Chase stood carefully up, his nose was bleeding. "I guess I deserved that."  
  
"Damn right you did."  
  
Kate turned her back to the reunited couple. She felt like she was disturbing a private moment and she was blushing. She tried to look the other way. Why couldn't she and Jack have something like that?  
  
Suddenly she thought she saw a shadow moving a few levels lower in the stairs. She leaned over the railing to have a better view, but she didn't see anything anymore. She tried to breath quieter to hear something but then she convinced herself that it was nothing. She took a quick look over Michelle and Tony, who were still all over each other, and turned her head away. Suddenly, there it was again. She was just about to open her mouth and notify Tony and Michelle, when a gunshot broke the silence. Kate had enough time to see the shadow approaching from below. She saw a woman drawing a gun but before she had any time to react, she felt a ripping pain in her left shoulder. She moaned in pain and staggered away from the railing.  
  
"What the f..." Tony shouted and ran to Kate just in time to help her lie down.  
  
"There's someone a few levels below us." Kate said breathing heavily. The bullet had gone straight through her shoulder and Tony was desperately trying to find something to stop the bleeding.  
  
Kate's words hit Michelle back to reality. "Tony, it was Lilah, that's why I was heading down there in the first place."  
  
"Michelle, come here. Press this." Michelle kneeled next to him and pressed the wound as Tony had pointed her.  
  
"She's working with Ryan. Oh, I'm so sorry, I don't know how it slipped my mind."  
  
Tony stood up and loaded his gun.  
  
"Honey, what are you going to do?" Michelle asked although she knew the answer already.  
  
"Don't worry, I wouldn't dare to die now that I've gotten you back." He smiled.  
  
Michelle wasn't all that convinced. She didn't want him to go, now that she'd finally held him in her arms but she didn't have a choice either. She nodded and tried to smile. She turned her head and focused on Kate who was sweating and panicking. Michelle's hands were bloody, much of it was Kates but some also her own. The wound she'd gotten earlier was still bleeding and the bandage Alex had tied was wet from blood. She swept a curl from her forehead and watched Tony walking the stairs slowly down.  
  
"Everything's going to be fine." She whispered to Kate. 


	17. Footsteps

_Author's Note: Hold your horses now, I did say this one was unfinished, didn't I? Here's the ending to Chapter 17, the small line you'll find between two paragraphs indicates what's new and what's not, just in case you're too lazy to read the whole chapter from the beginning ;)_  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tony was filled with emotions, but he determinedly put them aside as he walked the stairs down, one step at a time. He had his gun ready to shoot as he tried not to make much of noise. He knew that Lilah had the benefit of surprise, and he wanted to make sure she wasn't going to use that benefit on his expense. He could hear Michelle's gentle whispering above him and Kate's panicking voice, and he tried hard to focus and not to be distracted. Although it wasn't so simple. Just minutes ago he'd gotten his wife back, someone he loved the most in the world, someone he thought he had lost forever. "Everything's going to be fine." He kept repeating Michelle's words in his head.

Tony stepped down to the basement-level. He wasn't sure where the corridor led, but it was empty. The floor was dusty, it hadn't been cleaned for ages. He concluded that the doors probably led to old holding or storage rooms that weren't been used for years. He watched the floor carefully. He could see footprints from the dust leading specifically to a door. He held his gun tighter and started walking towards the door making sure at the same time, that no one was to attack him from behind. The time seemed to stop when he slowly walked to the door. He was alert and ready to shoot from the slightest sound he heard. The woman had to be somewhere out there.

Tony finally reached the door. He pressed against the wall and cautiously tried the handle – the door wasn't locked. He opened the door keeping himself safe behind the wall until he rushed in. The room wasn't big and there was only one small window that didn't provide much light. But it was enough for Tony to see that what he was looking for wasn't in there. Instead, there was someone lying on the floor. It was a man, Tony noticed as he moved closer. The man was pale and motionless. He looked remotely familiar, but Tony couldn't remember where he had seen him. He was aiming his gun at the man, just in case, and carefully kneeled next to him to check if he was breathing. He placed the back of his hand over the man's mouth to feel his breath and then tried to find his pulse just to confirm what he had already suspected, that he was dead.

Suddenly the door slammed shut. Tony stood up and ran to the door just to find it locked. How could he have let himself to fall in such an easy trick, he cursed while banging the door with his fists.

He heard footsteps echoing in the corridor. They were moving away from the door towards the stairs. The first thing that hit Tony's mind was Michelle, how she was out there in the stairs with Kate. He aimed his gun at the lock and fired.

The gunshots startled Michelle. She had tied Kate's shoulder as best as she could.

"What's happening?" Kate reached Michelle's hand. She took it and held it tightly.

"I don't know." Michelle said waiting for something to happen. She started hearing footsteps climbing up the stairs.

"Is that Tony?"

"If Tony's wearing high heels.." Michelle said. She didn't dare to think what had happened to her husband. "Come on, Kate. Try to get up, ok?"

She tried to lift Kate up and Kate tried not to cry from pain.

"Quickly!" Michelle helped her climb a few stairs up. She could hear the steps getting closer and with every step, her heart beat faster. They didn't have a long way to the upper level where they could sneak inside to the office.

Kate was leaning to Michelle and tried to keep up with her speed. Michelle was dragging her up as fast as she could.

"Michelle, stop. I can't go that fast." Kate let go of Michelle and sat on the stairs and tried to catch her breath.

"Where's my gun?!" Michelle panicked and quickly went through her clothes and tried to remember where she had put it. First Tony and then Kate, she couldn't keep track of everything, could she?

Michelle's gun was lying on the floor where they had just left. Kate's gun was close by, she had dropped it when she'd got shot. The footsteps were just a few levels below.

-------------------------

A short look at Kate and Michelle made her choice. She surely wasn't fit for a quick exit, she could barely stand up. Michelle ran the steps down towards the guns but she'd hardly made it to the landing when a she saw an unpleasantly familiar face standing just a few steps away from her.

"Well, well.. What do we have here?" Lilah smirked holding a gun.

Michelle weighed her chances to reach the guns but Lilah stepped victoriusly to the landing.

"You are not that stupid, Michelle. Don't even think about it!"

She kicked the guns further away. "You have any idea how much time and effort it took to get those explosives under your house?"

"Hopefully not that much, considering the outcome." Michelle replied sarcastically.

"Maybe I should've done it in the oldfashioned way. But, nevermind, better late than never, right? Tell me now, which one of you should go first, you or the blonde?"

Lilah smirked and turned to face Kate and for a second she looked confused. "Who the hell are you?!"

"Warner.. Kate Warner." Kate sobbed in terror.

"Sweet, very sweet. I almost had you mistaken for someone else. But it doesn't matter.. Nice to meet you, Kate. I'm so sorry we had to meet under circumstances like these. But I don't think we would've gotten along anyways." Lilah laughed. "Goodbye!"

Three gunshots filled the stairway. Michelle closed her eyes and turned her head away from Kate. After a quiet pause she dared to open them again. Kate was still sitting on the floor, now shaking more than ever. Lilah was lying in front of her, her face towards the floor and her back covered in blood which had made the back of her shirt bright red.

Tony stood behind them holding his gun.

"Looks like I made it just in time." He said seriously.

Michelle smiled. "Yeah, that was pretty close."

Suddenly they both looked up. It was a voice of a chopper, coming closer every second.

"That must be Ryan!" Michelle said nervously.

"Jack's on the roof."

"Kim and Chase too."

Tony didn't dare to think what could and what already had happened on the roof.

"I better get there too."

Michelle nodded. "I'll stay with Kate."

Tony stepped next to her and stroked her cheek. "I love you."

She smiled. "I love you too."

Ryan Chappelle gestured the pilot to land on the roof. He had seen Chase quite a while ago waving on the roof and the absence of Lilah had alerted him. Why was she not on the roof? Had something else gone wrong? He couldn't help thinking about Jack and he praised himself for covering his tracks so well, that nothing could indicate that he had anything to do with the deals. The chopper landed on the roof and Ryan stepped down. He walked to Chase and saw his face, which was all bruised.

"What's going on?!" He shouted over the noise made by the chopper. "Where is Lilah?"

"We had an encounter with Jack Bauer, sir!" Chase shouted back.

"What do you mean?" Ryan took a look around the roof, there seemed to be no one besides them.

Jack quietly sneaked behind the chopper and knocked the pilot unconscious with a single hit. He knew well enough that without solid proof Chappelle would get a minimum sentence, if he would be convicted at all. He was still going to make Chase pay for his betrayal but for now, they had to work as a team. He quickly put the pilot's jacket, helmet and sunglasses on and shut the engine off. If they were to get anything on tape, they couldn't do it with the chopper noise on the background.

Ryan turned around to see why the pilot had shut the engines. The pilot gave him 'thumbs up' to indicate everything was ok, so Ryan turned his attention back to Chase.

"You're telling me you have Jack Bauer tied up and gagged downstairs?"

Chase nodded. "Lilah is watching after him as we speak."

"I want to see him."

"Ok, but first, tell me that I'm still part of the plan. That you aren't just going to use me as a scapegoat!" Chase demanded.

"Where did that come from? Didn't I tell you not to think on your own?"

"Very funny. I just realized that everything in your plan leads back to me."

"Pretty smart, isn't it! But what do you care, you'll get your fair share, more than you're worth, actually!"

"I think I'm worth a lot more. I'm risking my ass here!"

"Don't push your luck, boy!" Ryan started to get agitated. "You should just keep doing as your told."

"Like smuggling guns and killing people when you say so?"

"Yes! If you suddendly developed a conscience, that's not my problem!"

"That's nice to know, Ryan." Jack stepped down from the chopper. He removed his helmet and glasses. "I think the jury should also know who lies behind this master plan."

"You just won't go away, Jack!" Ryan drew his gun but Jack had his one already aimed at him. Chase also had his gun pointed towards Chappelle.

"Drop the gun, Ryan!" Jack shouted.

The door to the roof opened and Tony rushed outside.

"Need any help here, Jack?" He asked after realizing the situation.

"With the evidence we've got, he'll sit life in prison." Jack replied. "Now, Ryan. There's nothing more to do, just drop the gun!"

"Just do it, nobody has to get hurt anymore." Chase said.

Ryan smirked. He was surrounded and going down, but he wouldn't go down alone. He saw Kim walking out to see what was going on. Ryan turned his gun to her and pulled the trigger. Jack turned to see what was happening and in horror saw his daughter standing in the bullet's way. He shot Ryan in the leg just a split second after Ryan had fired his shot.

Kim stood on the roof scared. She hadn't been too comfortable with her father's plan, and she was so glad to see Tony rush in to help Chase and Jack. She heard two shots being fired, the first Ryan's and the latter her father's. She saw Tony turning around towards her and her father moving towards Chappelle, but most important, she saw Chase throwing himself between her and Ryan. It was just like watching a movie in slow motion without any sound. Although it all happened in an blink of an eye, it felt like the events took minutes to happen.

"Kim, are you ok?!" Jack shouted.

Kim startled back to reality. Jack had disarmed Ryan and was dialing a number on Chappelle's cell phone and demanded an ambulance. Tony had kneeled down next to Chase, who was still on the ground. She rushed next to him and kneeled down. Chase had his eyes closed and blood coming from the gunwound on his chest and also from his head, he'd obviously hit on the ground when he fell down.

"Oh my God!" She wept not believing what had just happened.

Tony hugged her consolingly. "I'm so sorry, Kim."


	18. Goodbye

Kim sat on her bed. She watched George play on the bedroom floor. It had taken ages to find him from Chloe's apartment. It had hidden under the livingroom couch and refused to show himself. Now it had found one of Chase's socks under the bed and pretended it was the best prey in the world.  
  
"You're such a tiger, aren't you!" Kim lifted the cat and stroked its soft fur. George started to purr.  
  
"I bet you miss her, don't you?" She kept on talking to the cat. "If it's any consolation, I know what you're going through."  
  
George rested his head on Kim's hand. She wiped a tear and stood up holding the cat in a tight hug.  
  
"I'm sorry, you probably think I'm such a cry-baby!" She laughed. "Let's go and see if we can find something for you from the kitchen!"  
  
Kim walked to the kitchen trough the hall which was full of cardboard-boxes. She'd started to pack her things, clothes and books and things she could fit into her car. The furniture she'd sell or give away, she hadn't decided. Chase's things and clothes were still untouched in closets and of course, under the bed, where he often, despite of Kim's nagging, had left stuff lying. Kim knew she would have to go through them some time soon, but she just couldn't, not yet. She needed some time away from L.A.  
  
Jack sat beside Kate's hospital bed. She'd been awake earlier but now she was asleep again. But she was going to be fine, that was all that mattered. He watched her breath peacefully.  
Jack had told her that he was leaving. Kate had just nodded and smiled.  
  
"Where to?"  
  
"I don't know, Europe maybe."  
  
"Paris is beautiful at this time of year."  
  
"Yeah? Well, you never know.."  
  
..  
  
"Kate, You do know that I'm sorry."  
  
"I know."  
  
"..For everything."  
  
"I know, Jack."  
  
"Good."  
  
"If you're leaving for Kim, I don't think she blames you, you just need to give her some time... And if you're leaving for me.. I'd rather see you here."  
  
"I know. But I think I need to do this for my own sake."  
  
"I hope you find what you're looking for. And if you ever come back.."  
  
"Kate, don't wait for me."  
  
"Then it's goodbyes then."  
  
Kate had leaned over to Jack and kissed him gently on the lips, before closing her eyes and falling to sleep.  
  
Jack turned the night lamp off and walked to the door.  
  
"Goodbye." He said and closed the door behind him.  
  
Michelle leaned on Tony when they walked through the ruins left of their house. She had just gotten out of the hospital and she felt a lot better already. Tony had refused to leave her alone for a second.  
  
"I can't believe this used to be our house!" Michelle sighed.  
  
"And I can't believe how close I was to losing you." Tony held her close to him.  
  
"But you didn't, I'm still here."  
  
They walked away from the ruins to where the garden used to be. The grass was burned and there was almost nothing left.  
  
"Wow, that old tree survived the blast." Tony laughed and pointed at the lonely tree standing steadyly in the back yard.  
  
"And it should stay there too." Michelle said.  
  
"Yeah, it should."  
  
Michelle took Tony's hand they just stood still on the back yard thinking, not the things they used to have, but what they still had.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_Author's Final Note: It's finally done, although it ended up being a lot different than I had thought. If you've read it then do me a favour and submit a review and tell me what you thought of it. And now, till next time: Goodbye!_


End file.
